heterotroph
1
9.4
- noun
- /ˈhɛtərəˌtroʊf/
- Specialized
:
heterótrofo
- The food chain is similar, though: micro-organisms as the basis, with a pyramid of heterotrophs built on their transformative activity.
Examples
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Animals, such as dogs and cats, are heterotrophs because they obtain energy from the food they consume.
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Then you have all these heterotrophs, the ones that use the organic carbon and they have various ways of doing that.
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Animals are heterotrophs and thus fuel their metabolic demands by breaking down the carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins they ingest.
Academic text (2011) -
As heterotrophs, humans rely on a diet of plants and animals for their nutritional needs.
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Plants are not heterotrophs, unlike animals which must consume organic material for sustenance.
Antonyms
How Self-Producing
- Specialized
2
9.3
- Specialized
- Specialized
1
9.4
- Specialized
111
4.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
heterotroph = hetero + troph
Built from the combining forms 'hetero-' (other) + '-troph' (feeding/nourishment); the overall composition is meaningful in biological contexts, but '-troph' is a technical combining form not familiar to all learners.
Etymology
Heterotroph comes from Greek parts hetero- meaning 'other' and -troph meaning 'food' or 'feeding'. So a heterotroph is a living thing that must get its food from other organisms, not make it itself like an autotroph.