If left in the open, do human faeces form part of a natural food chain?

Answer 1

For thousands of years, China's farmers have used human manure, or "nightsoil", as fertilizer (King, 1911). In this example from the Tai Lake Region, nightsoil is collected and stored in large ceramic tanks or water-tight slate-lined or concrete pits. Manure and urine are collected in buckets within the household, or deposited directly in the storage tanks, which are usually located in the animal stall and toilet area of the household. Occasionally urine is collected and applied separately. It is common to mix pig manure with nightsoil in storage, as pig stalls are connected to storage tanks via a sluice, to facilitate collection of pig manure and urine. Prior to intensive use of synthetic fertilizers, nightsoil was an important fertilizer for nearly all crops, including rice and wheat. Now, nightsoil is applied mostly to small-scale vegetable plots and other rainfed household crops. The primary reason for this change is that nightsoil is applied in liquid form, so that it is much heavier than chemical fertilizers. As vegetables and rainfed crop fields are usually nearer to the household than paddy fields, nightsoil use is now concentrated in these areas. Another reason for preferential use of nightsoil on horticultural crops is that it is believed to enhance the productivity and flavor of these crops, especially Bok Choy

Answer 2

What do you mean on the ideal of the nutrition chain? If somebody else does the paintings for then you definately this is elementary, yet once you rather could do it your self some human beings could not do it. Watch Survivor. lots of the time the individuals can't get any meat because of the fact they might't hunt or fish ok. A majority of the time they consume what they might locate. the only while they have been in Africa the individuals have been petrified of the lions/tigers that ought to come around. I have not got any difficulty gutting an animal if it merits it.

Answer 3

before sewage systems were fully developed,raw sewage used to be taken by horse and carts to the fields outside of the towns and cities and used as fertiliser by the farmers for growing food for human consumption.,and in the 90s I passed a field in England which was being fertilised as I was passing and it was raw human sewage that was being used ,you can always tell by the smell,so some of the food you are presently eating may have been grown using human sewage,doesn't sound good I know but that's life;( its still better than all the chemicals we have been using)
good question /starred
nexus; I think that was urine that they used to make gunpowder with( saltpetre I believe was extracted from the urine but not 100% sure)

Answer 4

Human waste eventually composts, and is recycled by nature. And yes flies and other creatures will feed on it so it is also part of the food chain.

Answer 5

yes.it will decay by action of decomposers like bacteria.human faeces is said to be a very good organic maniore for growing plants.

Answer 6

Yeah. Flies feast on excrement as you will see if ever you come across untended dog crap. The flies get eaten by spiders; the spiders get eaten by birds; the birds get eaten by humans, who excrete food for the happy flies. Lovely, isn't it?

Answer 7

If you go to India they practically beg you to use their toliets so they can dig out your fecies and use it for fertilizer. It sells too. They believe that Americans with our variety diets have better fertilizer in us then themselves.

=)

Answer 8

Just about all natural matter ultimately gets "recycled", it's just a matter of time.

Answer 9

It used to be an ingredient of gunpowder as far as I can recall.

Add:

John K - Yes, that was it - you're right it was urine they used in gunpowder.

Answer 10

yeah,bacteria,fungi and dung beetle will start to feed on them rite?