Insectivore

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the now-abandoned mammal taxon, see Insectivora.

canine teeth in self-defence (and, occasionally, in digging[citation needed
]); accordingly, the canines have not been greatly reduced.
A robber fly eating a hoverfly
The giant anteater, a large insectivorous mammal

An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant that eats insects.[1] An alternative term is entomophage,[2] which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects.

The first vertebrate insectivores were

piscivores, with numerous sharp conical teeth, much like a modern crocodile. The same tooth arrangement is however also suited for eating animals with exoskeletons, thus the ability to eat insects is an extension of piscivory.[3]

At one time, insectivorous

taxa have been reclassified; those that have not yet been reclassified and found to be truly related to each other remain in the order Eulipotyphla
.

Although individually small, insects exist in enormous numbers. Insects make up a very large part of the animal biomass in almost all non-marine, non-polar environments. It has been estimated that the global insect biomass is in the region of 1012 kg (one

quintillion) organisms.[4]: 13  Many creatures depend on insects as their primary diet, and many that do not (and are thus not technically insectivores) nevertheless use insects as a protein supplement, particularly when they are breeding.[5]

Examples

Examples of insectivores include different kinds of species of

arboreal insectivores.[11]

Insectivorous plants

Main article:
Insectivorous plants
Drosera species

protozoan. The benefit they derive from their catch varies considerably; in some species, it might include a small part of their nutrient intake and in others it might be an indispensable source of nutrients. As a rule, however, such animal food, however valuable it might be as a source of certain critically important minerals, is not the plants' major source of energy, which they generally derive mainly from photosynthesis.[12]
: 14 

Insectivorous plants might consume insects and other animal material trapped adventitiously. However, most species to which such food represents an important part of their intake are specifically, often spectacularly, adapted to attract and secure adequate supplies. Their prey animals typically, but not exclusively, comprise insects and other arthropods. Plants highly adapted to reliance on animal food use a variety of mechanisms to secure their prey, such as pitfalls, sticky surfaces, hair-trigger snaps, bladder-traps, entangling furriness, and lobster-pot trap mechanisms.[12]: 14–17  Also known as carnivorous plants, they appear adapted to grow in places where the soil is thin or poor in nutrients, especially nitrogen, such as acidic bogs and rock outcroppings.[12]: 13 

Insectivorous plants include the

waterwheel plant, brocchinia and many members of the Bromeliaceae. The list is far from complete, and some plants, such as Roridula
species, exploit the prey organisms mainly in a mutualistic relationship with other creatures, such as resident organisms that contribute to the digestion of prey. In particular, animal prey organisms supply carnivorous plants with nitrogen, but they also are important sources of various other soluble minerals, such as potassium and trace elements that are in short supply in environments where the plants flourish. This gives them a decisive advantage over other plants, whereas in nutrient-rich soils they tend to be out-competed by plants adapted to aggressive growth where nutrient supplies are not the major constraints.

Technically these plants are not strictly insectivorous, as they consume any animal that they can secure and consume; the distinction is trivial, however, because not many primarily insectivorous organisms exclusively consume insects. Most of those that do have such a restrictive diet, such as certain parasitoids and hunting wasps, are specialized to exploit particular species, not insects in general. Indeed, much as large mantids and spiders will do, the larger varieties of pitcher plants have been known to consume vertebrates such as small rodents and lizards.[12]: 13  Charles Darwin wrote the first well-known treatise on carnivorous plants in 1875.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ Miller, George A. (2009). "Article for insectivorous". WordNet. Princeton University. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  2. ISBN 978-1-4051-1113-3
    .
  3. doi:10.1130/G31182.1
    .
  4. ISBN 978-0-691-09491-5
    .
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-0-89886-808-1
    . Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  6. ^ ""Long-beaked Echidna (Zaglossus bruijni)" (entry)". animalinfo.org. West of Scotland & Ayr Group. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  7. ^ Holekamp, Kay E. "Aardwolf (Proteles cristata)". www.animalinfo.org. Archived from the original on 17 April 2010. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  8. ISBN 978-0-412-49800-8
    . Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  9. ISBN 978-0-7614-1816-0
    .
  10. ISBN 0-521-32370-3
    .
  11. ISBN 0-673-39013-6
    .
  12. ^
    ISBN 978-0-262-69089-8
    .
  13. ^ Darwin, C. (1875). Insectivorous Plants. London, UK: John Murray. Archived from the original on 23 September 2006.
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