FOOD CHAIN

Pronunciation (US):

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does food chain mean? 

• FOOD CHAIN (noun)
  The noun FOOD CHAIN has 1 sense:

1. (ecology) a community of organisms where each member is eaten in turn by another member

  Familiarity information: FOOD CHAIN used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• FOOD CHAIN (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

(ecology) a community of organisms where each member is eaten in turn by another member

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Hypernyms ("food chain" is a kind of...):

organic phenomenon ((biology) a natural phenomenon involving living plants and animals)

Domain category:

bionomics; ecology; environmental science (the branch of biology concerned with the relations between organisms and their environment)

Holonyms ("food chain" is a part of...):

food cycle; food web ((ecology) a community of organisms where there are several interrelated food chains)

 Context examples 

Although often naturally occurring, these contaminants have made their way into water supplies and, via irrigation, into the food chain.

(Experts warn of cardiovascular risk from heavy metal pollution, University of Cambridge)

There are plenty of important food-poisoning bacteria, including other strains of E. coli, that do go down the food chain.

(Wash your hands or else spread superbug E. coli, say scientists, Wikinews)

It can pass through the food chain and build up in fish, shellfish, and animals that eat fish.

(Mercury, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry)

The fish move easily through the river, they're ornamental fish, but they're part of the food chain.

(Report unveils 381 new plant and animal species in Amazon, Agência Brasil)

A new study explores how a process called microbialization destroys links in this delicate food chain.

(Too much algae and too many microbes threaten coral reefs, NSF)

POPs are slow to break down, may persist in water and air, and may be passed through the food chain.

(Persistent organic pollutants in maternal blood linked to smaller fetal size, National Institutes of Health)

It disturbs the reproduction, growth, and metabolism of marine species, and transforms the food chain.

(Pacific island fish migrating to cooler seas, SciDev.Net)

These birds were able to adapt to their environment, and sustain themselves in the food chain.

(Researchers report rapid formation of new bird species in Galápagos islands, Wikinews)

Unlike red algae, whose blooms can damage the ecosystem, green algae form the basis of the food chain, providing food for crustaceans and larger organisms.

(Scientists report skyrocketing phyotplankton population in aftermath of Kīlauea eruption, Wikinews)

By removing a top predator, their prey can burgeon and compromise the food chain all the way down, affecting seafood consumed by people, the study says.

(New way to save endangered sharks – and our seafood, SciDev.Net)