Decomposers break down feces and dead plant and animal matter into simple nutrients that can be used by primary producers like plants and algae. Decomposers are an essential part of the ecosystem since they ensure the cycling of various nutrients, including carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium.
By allowing these nutrients to return to the soil, plants can reuse these nutrients for growth and reproduction and the animals that rely on plants for nutrition can continue to survive.
Decomposers are like the housekeepers of an ecosystem. Without them, dead plants and animals would keep piling up with the nutrients the soil needs trapped inside. Decomposers clean up the dead material by processing it and returning the nutrients to the soil for the producers. If the decomposer community is damaged or dies, the whole biogeochemical cycle of an ecosystem is affected. Should this happen on a larger scale, the entire planet would be in peril.
Decomposers play a critical role in the flow of energy through an ecosystem. They break apart dead organisms into simpler inorganic materials, making nutrients available to primary producers.