euryphage

English

Etymology

From eury- +‎ -phage, from Ancient Greek εὐρύς (eurús, “wide”) + φαγεῖν (phageîn, “to eat”).

Noun

euryphage (plural euryphages)

1. (ecology) Any animal that eats a large variety of food.

Usage notes

A euryphage is not necessarily an omnivore; for example, although they are carnivorous, adult hake are euryphages, feeding on a wide variety of active prey, mainly horse mackerel, sardines, fishes of the families Myctophidae and Macrouridae and fishes of their own genus, apart from various crustaceans and Cephalopoda. In contrast, an extreme stenophage such as a koala feeds only on a few species of Eucalyptus leaves.

Synonyms

• polyphage

Derived terms

• euryphagous
• euryphagy