Related Words

Prey: An animal that is used by other animals for food.

Prey Switching: The tendency of predators to switch to a more readily available prey when one prey species becomes rare; allows the first prey population to rebound and helps prevent its extinction.

Chelicerae: The pincerlike first pair of appendages of the arachnids: in spiders two-segmented, the distal portion or fang used to inject venom from enclosed glands into the prey.

Endite: The plate borne by the coxa of the pedipalps of most spiders, used to crush the prey: the maxilla.

Symbiosis: An interactive association between two or more species living together; may be parasitic, commensal, or mutualistic. The relationship between two organisms.

DDT: The abbreviated name of a chlorinated hydrocarbon insecticide, dichloro-diphenyl-trichloromethane. It is persistent in the environment and biomagnifies in birds of prey. The Environmental Pr . . . View Full Definition

Paradox: A self-contradictory phrase or sentence, such as 'the ascending rain' or alexander pope's description of man, 'great lord of all things, yet a prey to all.' don marquis's 'quote buns by grea . . . View Full Definition

Biomagnification (Or Biological Magnification): The increase in the concentration of bioaccumulated toxic chemicals in organisms higher on the food chain due to preferential storage of the toxic chemical in edible body parts. For example, . . . View Full Definition

Trichocysts: Barbed, thread-like organelles of ciliated protozoans that can be discharged for defense or to capture prey.

Biotic Factor: A living component of the environment which arises from and affects living organisms (distinct from physical factors). For example, the interaction between predators and prey is a biotic int . . . View Full Definition