What do macroinvertebrates eat?

Macroinvertebrate Feeding Groups Shredders get energy from breaking down big vegetation like leaves and branches. Grazers scrape algae and other things off of rocks and the sand. Collectors filter the water for very small organisms and pieces of vegetation. Predators eat other macroinvertebrates and fish.

Shredders: Caddisfly Larvae Caddisfly Larvae have large pincers which allow them to break down large vegetation like leaves.

Grazers: Freshwater Snails Freshwater Snails have many small teeth, which act like sandpaper, scraping algae off of rocks.

Collectors: Net Building Caddisfly Net building caddisflies build nets which catch very small organisms and other particles.

Predators: Dragonfly Larvae Dragonflies have specialized mouth-parts to catch prey. (Here’s a cool video of the jaws in action!)