noun
Technical biological term for feeding on dead or decaying organic matter.
死物寄生は、生態系における分解者の重要な役割の一つである。
Saprophagy is one of the important roles of decomposers in an ecosystem.
腐生 is a broader term for saprophytism or saprotrophic nutrition, often used for plants and fungi, while 死物寄生 specifically emphasizes feeding on dead organic matter.
Compound of 死物 (dead matter) and 寄生 (parasitism), literally 'parasitism on dead things'. The exact historical derivation is uncertain; it is a technical term likely coined in modern biology.