Definitions for apex predator
apex preda·tor

WiktionaryRate this definition:3.5 / 2 votes

1. apex predatornoun

   An animal atop the food chain, preying but not prey.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Apex predator

   An apex predator, also known as a top predator, is a predator at the top of a food chain, without natural predators of its own.Apex predators are usually defined in terms of trophic dynamics, meaning that they occupy the highest trophic levels. Food chains are often far shorter on land, usually limited to being secondary consumers – for example, wolves prey mostly upon large herbivores (primary consumers), which eat plants (primary producers). The apex predator concept is applied in wildlife management, conservation, and ecotourism. Apex predators have a long evolutionary history, dating at least to the Cambrian period when animals such as Anomalocaris dominated the seas. Humans have for many centuries interacted with apex predators including the wolf, birds of prey, and cormorants to hunt game animals, birds, and fish respectively. More recently, humans have started interacting with apex predators in new ways. These include interactions via ecotourism, such as with the tiger shark, and through rewilding efforts, such as the proposed reintroduction of the Iberian lynx.

WikidataRate this definition:5.0 / 4 votes

1. Apex predator

   Apex predators are predators with few to no predators of their own, residing at the top of their food chain. Zoologists define predation as the killing and consumption of another organism. In this context, "apex predator" is usually defined in terms of trophic dynamics. Apex predator species occupy the highest trophic level and have a crucial role in maintaining the health of their ecosystems. One study of marine food webs defined apex predators as greater than trophic level four. The apex predator concept is commonly applied in wildlife management, conservation, and ecotourism. Food chains are often far shorter on land, with the top of the food chain limited to the third trophic level, as where such predators as the big cats, crocodilians, hyenas, wolves, or giant constrictor snakes prey upon large herbivores. Apex predators do not need to be hypercarnivores. For example, grizzly bears and humans are each apex predators and are omnivores.

How to pronounce apex predator?

1. Alex

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   Mark

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   Daniel

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   Libby

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How to say apex predator in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of apex predator in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of apex predator in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of apex predator in a Sentence

1. Benoit Bruneau:

   This is an apex predator living on isolated islands, and it's absolutely gigantic. It's just an awesome animal, reptiles are kind of like a playground for evolution. There is so much diversity in size and form and behavior and their physiology.

2. Stephanie Drumheller:

   Allosaurus might not have been as big as T. rex, but it was no slouch as an apex predator, it was able to hyper-extend its jaw for a super-wide gape. It was a hatchet feeder like a hawk, meaning it would chop into prey with its head. It had long arms with grasping claws and a strong bite force. Track sites suggest it might have been a long-distance hunter that would follow herds for miles to pick off prey.

3. Bob Hueter:

   Sharks have been around for about 400 million years, they in many cases occupy what's called the apex predator position, in marine food webs. Just like on land, that is an important role in terms of keeping the lower parts of the food web healthy and balanced.

4. Matthew Carrano:

   I knew that we needed something dramatic for what would inevitably be a centerpiece of the hall. And these are two dinosaur species that co-existed 68-66 million years ago in western North America, so it would represent a possible real-world interaction, but we've deliberately left the scenario open, as to whether this represents T. rex killing Triceratops or scavenging an already dead individual. The idea is to better portray the role of an apex predator, which is often opportunistic. In life, I imagine that even T. rex would have favored easier meals than a healthy, adult Triceratops – if such were available: young or sick or elderly individuals, for example.

References

1. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Apex_Predator
2. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apex_Predator
3. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=apex predator