Amazon River Food Web

The Sun

The sun is the source of all life and the basis for almost all ecosystems on earth.

Sun

Phytoplankton {Euglenophyta}

A unicellular aquatic algae, euglenophytal is a producer that makes its food from the sun. It is at the base of many aquatic food webs.

Phytoplankton

Water Hyacinth (Eichhornia Crassipes)

Water Hyacinth

The water hyacinth is a plant that is native to the Amazon River. It receives its energy from the sun through photosynthesis,

The water hyacinth produces tons of seeds from each fruit that feed many fish.

Green Algae {Chlorophyta}

Algae

Algae is one of the main food sources for many aquatic animals including turtles. Like phytoplankton they get their energy from the sun and through the process of photosynthesis make food for the other parts of the food web.

Victoria Amazonica Water Lilies {Victoria Lindl}

Water Lilies

These water lilies are some of the biggest, flowering for only 48 hours they dominate many still water areas of the river with their huge leaves. In the food web they are a food source for herbivores such as manatees and their pollen is eaten by insects such as beetles.

Manatee {Trichechus inunguis}

Manatee

A kind of fresh water Manatee that lives in the Amazon River, mostly inhabiting the black water lakes and lagoons connected to the main channel. They are generally solitary with the biggest groups are usually only 4-8 manatees.

Diet: A manatee is a herbivore and so, a primary consumer. Their diet consists of leafy aquatic vegetation including water lilies.

Yellow Spotted Amazon River Turtle{Podocnemis Unifilis}

Turtle

Although the yellow spotted amazon river turtle is native to the Amazon it can still be found in Columbia, Ecuador, and northeastern Peru.

Diet: As an omnivore, the yellow spotted amazon river turtle eats a variety of organisms. Including algae, fruit and small fish.

The Yellow Spotted Amazon River Turtle can live up to 70 years old.

Shrimp (Caridea)

Shrimp

Shrimp are crustaceans that can be found in various water ecosystems throughout the world. Including rivers and lakes.

Diet: A shrimps diet mainly consists of plankton and algae. However, they are also known to eat dead fish, or any other decaying matter along the riverbed.

Tambaqui {Colossoma Macropomum}

Black Pacu

A Large fresh water fish, the tambaqui, or black pacu are generally a primary consumer in the food web.

Diet: Their diet consists of mostly nuts, seeds, aquatic plants and fruit.

Alligator Gar {Atractosteus spatula}

Alligator Gar

These are among the oldest living fish on the earth today and are often referred to as “Primitive fishes”, or “fossil fish”.

They are a relatively passive, seemingly sluggish and solitary fish, but are voracious ambush hunters. They float just below the surface of the water and feed on unsuspecting water fowl, small rodents, and other fish.

Stingray {Myliobatoidei}

Stingray

The stingray can grow to have a disc width of approximately 18 inches and a tail of about 1 foot long and 1 inch wide.

Their diet consists mainly of crustaceans, other invertebrates, and, sometimes, small fish. They have very powerful jaws so it can easily break the shells of clams and mussels. They will also eat shrimp, earthworms, and smelt (small fish found in the Amazon River, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans).

Amazon River Dolphin {Inia Geoffrensis}

Growing up to 9.2 ft long and weighing up to 352 lbs, the pink river dolphin inhabits the Amazon River as well as other South American rivers.

River Dolphin

Diet: As carnivores and 2 degree consumers, these dolphin's diet consists of small animals such as shrimp, crabs, fish and turtles.

Piranha (Pygocentrus Nattereri)

Piranha

The piranhas diet consists mainly of fish, crustaceans, seeds and other plants , worms, carrion, insects and other bugs.

However, some piranhas are vegetarians and some are cannibals. When food source is low and competition is high, some piranhas have been known to bite a fellow piranha, living or dead. There are also some species of piranhas that are mainly vegetarian with a diet consisting mostly of river weed.

Bull Shark {Carcharhinus leucas}

Bull Shark

The bull shark is considered one of the most dangerous sharks in the world. Most Bull Sharks span lengths of about 7 ft and weigh approximately 500 pounds, however, there are some reported cases of them being over 13 ft long.

The diet of the Bull Shark is not overly complicated because the creature is not picky. The Bull Shark will eat just about anything that crosses its path, including its own species if they're small enough..

Anaconda {Eunectes murinus}

Anaconda

The Anaconda holds the title for both the heaviest and longest snake in South America, growing up to 5 meters in length (17 feet). In relation to diameter and width, it is the largest snake in the world.

In the Amazon food chain, they are practically on top with their only predators being the occasional jaguar or caiman. They eat mainly small rodents, fish, birds, and sometimes other reptiles, including another anaconda. This cannibalism between the species tends to happen when a larger female eats a smaller male. They are also capable of eating larger animals such as capybaras, tapirs, and even caimans.

Caiman (Caimaninae)

The caiman is a species of reptile that is related to alligators and crocodiles. It can be found in freshwater habitats in both Central and South America.

Caiman

Diet: The caiman's main diet is composed of fish such as piranhas, catfish and perch. As a carnivore that eats other carnivores, the caiman is a tertiary consumer.

River Jaguar [panthera lumen]

The River Jaguar is a species of Jaguar that is more adapted to live in the water. Their long, muscular tails, slick fur, webbed feet, and short legs help them be more streamline in the water. They can hold their breath for over an hour. They can also see well in the water as they have developed a third eyelid.

River Jaguar

Diet: The River Jaguar eats all of the top preedators in the ecosystem with an exception of the Bull Shark. With this being said there is also a risk to the River Jaguar to be hunted in turn.