The process that directly moves nutrients from plants to animals is consumption.

Here's how it works:

* Plants produce their own food through photosynthesis, using sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide. This creates sugars and other nutrients.

* Animals cannot produce their own food, so they obtain nutrients by eating plants (herbivores) or eating other animals that have eaten plants (carnivores and omnivores).

* Through the process of digestion, animals break down the plant matter and absorb the nutrients into their bodies.

So, the act of eating, or consumption, is the direct link that moves nutrients from plants to animals.