Like all ecosystems, organisms in deserts can be organized in different trophic levels: Producers. Like other food chains, desert food chains also start with producers making their food. In deserts, date palms, cacti, acacia, sagebrush, desert milkweed, and desert willow are the producers.

Not surprisingly, the Atacama has a relatively abundant microbial population at wetter habitats such as wetlands and non-fossil salars (salt flats with surface and/or underground liquid water inflows from rains and rivers, e.g., Salar de Atacama and Salar de Llamara).

Some of its key industries include mining (copper, coal, and nitrate), manufactured products (food processing, chemicals, wood), and agriculture (fishing, viticulture, and fruit). Copper mining, in particular, is a prominent industry in Chile, with the Atacama Desert being a major source of copper. What mineral is mined in the Atacama Desert?

Primary producers in extreme arid environment of the Atacama Desert: Where, how and when? / Wierzchos, J.; de los Ríos, A.; Dávila, A.F. et al. In: Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 73, No. 13, 01.01.2009, p. A1439-A1439. Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research

The Atacama Desert and its ecoregion unveil a captivating narrative of geological wonders, historical complexities, and ecological marvels. This arid landscape beckons exploration and understanding, from the mineral-rich plateaus to the resilient flora and fauna surviving in extreme conditions.