|
A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' (Latin, ''caro'' meaning 'meat' or 'flesh' and ''vorare'' meaning 'to devour') is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging.〔Nutrient Requirements: Carnivores. Duane E. Ullrey. Encyclopedia of Animal Science.〕〔Mammals: Carnivores. Duane E. Ullrey. Encyclopedia of Animal Science.〕 Animals that depend solely on animal flesh for their nutrient requirements are called obligate carnivores while those that also consume non-animal food are called facultative carnivores.〔 Omnivores also consume both animal and non-animal food, and apart from the more general definition, there is no clearly defined ratio of plant to animal material that would distinguish a facultative carnivore from an omnivore.〔Mammals"' Omnivores. Duane E. Ullrey. Encyclopedia of Animal Science.〕 A carnivore that sits at the top of the foodchain is termed an apex predator. Plants that capture and digest insects (and, at times, other small animals) are called carnivorous plants. Similarly, fungi that capture microscopic animals are often called carnivorous fungi. ==Classification== The word "carnivore" sometimes refers to the mammalian order Carnivora, but this is somewhat misleading. While many Carnivora meet the definition of being meat eaters, not all do, and even fewer are true obligate carnivores (see below). For example, most species of bears are actually omnivorous, except for the giant panda, which is almost exclusively herbivorous, and the exclusively meat-eating polar bear, which lives in the Arctic, where few plants grow. In addition, there are plenty of carnivorous species that are not members of Carnivora. Outside the animal kingdom, there are several genera containing carnivorous plants and several phyla containing carnivorous fungi. The former are predominantly insectivores, while the latter prey mostly on microscopic invertebrates, such as nematodes, amoebae and springtails. Carnivores that eat insects and similar invertebrates primarily or exclusively are called insectivores, while those that eat fish primarily or exclusively are called piscivores. Large piscivore amphibians that evolved 400 million years ago were the first vertebrates to conquer land. Insectivores evolved next and predators of other vertebrates after that. An example of a carnivorous insect is ''Philanthus gibbosus''. This is a unique case of carnivore because it is an insect consuming another insect. ''P. gibbosus'' is a species of wasp that has been observed to paralyze bee species, coat them in pollen, and feed them to developing offspring. In the early stages of larval development, the coat of pollen serves as an additional source of protein for the young wasps. However, as the species ages, it transitions into a diet consisting entirely of pollen. Carnivores may alternatively be classified according to the percentage of meat in their diet. The diet of a hypercarnivore consists of more than 70% meat, that of a mesocarnivore 50-70%, and that of a hypocarnivore less than 30%, with the balance consisting of non-animal foods, which may include fruits, other plant material, or fungi. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Carnivore」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|