Plants are the main organisms (besides microorganisms) that use the nutrients released by decay, taking them up through their roots from the soil. Animals that eat these plants then indirectly use those recycled nutrients as well.

Who uses nutrients from decay?

  • Plants (like grasses, trees, crops) absorb mineral nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium that decomposers release into the soil. These nutrients fuel plant growth and help form new leaves, stems, and roots.
  • Detritivores such as earthworms, woodlice, and some insects directly feed on dead organic matter and the nutrient-rich material decomposers leave behind. In doing so, they also help further break down material and mix nutrients into the soil.
  • Herbivores and other animals then eat the nutrient-enriched plants, so the nutrients released by decay move up the food chain into bodies of animals like deer, rabbits, and even humans.

In simple terms: microorganisms and detritivores unlock the nutrients, plants take them in, and then animals gain them by eating those plants.

TL;DR: Apart from microorganisms, plants and detritivores (like earthworms and other small soil animals), and then the animals that eat those plants, all use the nutrients released by decay.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.