Predation
hideIn ecology, predation describes a biological interaction where a predator (an organism that is hunting) feeds on its prey, (the organism that is attacked). Predators may or may not kill their prey prior to feeding on them, but the act of predation always results in the death of the prey. The other main category of consumption is detritivory, the consumption of dead organic material (detritus). It can at times be difficult to separate the two feeding behaviors, for example where parasitic species prey on a host organism and then lay their eggs on it for their offspring to feed on its decaying corpse. The key characteristic of predation however is the predator's direct impact on the prey population. On the other hand, detritivores simply eat what is available and have no direct impact on the "donor" organism(s).
Selective pressures imposed on one another has led to an evolutionary arms race between prey and predator, resulting in various antipredator adaptations.
For more information about Predation, read the full article at
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News tagged with predators
Facebook, MySpace ban New York sex offenders
Dec 01, 2009 |
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Facebook and MySpace have closed the accounts of 3,533 convicted sex offenders in New York state under a law combating online predators, officials said Tuesday.
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Lizards change their diet to avoid predators
Dec 02, 2009 |
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A scientist from the University of Salamanca and another from Yale University have shown that the presence of predators affects the behaviour of Acanthodactylus beershebensis, a lizard species from the Ne ...
Birds Call to Warn Friends and Enemies
Dec 03, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Birds' alarm calls serve both to alert other birds to danger and to warn off predators. And some birds can pull a ventriloquist's trick, singing from the side of their mouths, according to a UC Davis study.
Fish with attitude: Some like it hot
Dec 03, 2009 |
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Coral reef fish can undergo a personality change in warmer water, according to an intriguing new study suggesting that climate change may make some species more aggressive.
Artificial refuges created to save the reptiles of Doņana
Nov 30, 2009 |
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The Aznalcóllar mining accident more than 11 years ago, which contaminated part of the Doņana National Park, also damaged reptile habitat there. Now a team of Spanish researchers, who have been studying ...
New forensic technique gives clues about sharks from bite damage
Dec 01, 2009 |
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Hit-and-run attacks by sharks can be solved with a new technique that identifies the culprits by the unique chomp they put on their victims, according to a University of Florida researcher and shark expert.
Bacterial gut symbionts are tightly linked with the evolution of herbivory in ants
Dec 01, 2009 |
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Broadly speaking, ants have two different feeding strategies. A large proportion of all species are "carnivorous," meaning that they are generalist predators feeding on other small animals or scavenging on ...
Species down, disease up: Study shows biodiversity loss drives human infections
Dec 03, 2009 |
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The extinction of plant and animal species can be likened to emptying a museum of its collection, or dumping a cabinet full of potential medicines into the trash, or replacing every local cuisine with McDonald's burgers.
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