Such as fungi that live in decay and parasitism, most kinds of bacteria, animals that devour organic nutrients, such as insect-eating fish, grazing cattle and sheep; And organisms that permeate and absorb organic nutrients, such as fungi and parasitic higher plants.

Can only use ready-made organic matter as their own nutritional organisms. Only a few plants belong to heterotrophic species, such as dodder, an obligate parasitic plant in higher plants.

Unlike autotrophs,

Autotrophic organisms are organisms that grow with carbon dioxide as the main carbon source and can survive in an organic-free environment, including plants and bacteria that can carry out photosynthesis and bacteria that can synthesize energy, and are producers in the ecosystem.

Heterotrophs can't live in an environment without organic matter, including predators, parasites and saprophytes. It is a consumer or decomposer in the ecosystem. Heterotrophs and heterotrophs refer to those creatures who can only use the ready-made organics in the external environment as energy and carbon sources, ingest these organics into their bodies, convert them into their own components, and store energy. Such as: fungi living in saprophytic and parasitic life, most kinds of bacteria.