Skip to content
EntityQ47069863· pop 7· linked from 250 articles

Corallivore

Sign in to save

thumb|Yellow longnose butterflyfish browsing on coral polyps

~29 min read

Article

15 sections
Contents
  • History
  • Types
  • Feeding strategies
  • Mucus feeders
  • Browsers
  • Scrapers
  • Excavators
  • Bioeroders
  • In nature
  • Fish
  • Invertebrates
  • Impacts on ecosystem
  • Known corallivores
  • See also
  • References

thumb|Yellow longnose butterflyfish browsing on coral polyps

A corallivore is a carnivorous animal that feeds on coral. Corallivores are an important group of reef organism because they can influence coral abundance, distribution, and community structure. Corallivores feed on coral using a variety of unique adaptations and strategies. Known corallivores include certain mollusks, annelids, fish, crustaceans, flatworms and echinoderms. The first recorded evidence of corallivory was presented by Charles Darwin in 1842 during his voyage on HMS Beagle in which he found coral in the stomach of two Scarus parrotfish.

Available in 7 languages

via Wikidata sitelinks · CC0

Connections

Categories