erosion

Death is an integral part of the cycle of life.  In ecosystems, plants acquire inorganic compounds from their environment (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, etc.) and build them into complex organic compounds that nourish animals either directly (e,g,, herbivores than consume plants) or indirectly (carnivores that consume herbivores). Eventually, all plants and animals in the ecosystem die.  What is the fate of the nutrients they have accumulated during their life-time?

The Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed surrounds the historic city of Tombstone in southern Arizona. The USDA - Agricultural Research Service established the watershed in the 1950s to study floods and the impact of soil and water conservation projects on runoff.