What does the classification 'obligate grazer' signify regarding the wood bison's primary food source?
Answer
Grasses and sedges form the core of its entire annual sustenance.
The term 'obligate grazer' places the wood bison into a strict dietary category focused predominantly on graminoids. This means that the vast majority of the animal's nutritional needs, providing the essential bulk of energy required for survival and maintaining its massive size, must be met by consuming grasses and sedges. Even though they consume secondary items like leaves or lichen seasonally or situationally, their physiology and long-term survival are fundamentally dependent upon these specific types of vegetation. This dietary constraint dictates their habitat preference for meadow and grassland environments.
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