predation
predation The interaction between species populations in which one organism, the predator, obtains energy (as food) by consuming, usually killing, another, the prey. Most typically, a predator is an animal that catches, kills, and eats its prey; but predation also includes feeding by insectivorous plants and grazing interactions, e.g. the complete consumption of unicellular phytoplankton by zooplankton. Predation is analogous to parasitism in being both a means of feeding and a cause of immediate harm, but it differs in that predators are usually larger than prey organisms and the prey is usually killed. The distinction is not clear-cut, especially for insect populations. In detail, a continuous gradation of interactions is found from predation to parasitism.
More From encyclopedia.com
NEARBY TERMS
predation
