Showing definitions for apex predator

apex predator

American

[ey-peks pred-uh-ter, -tawr] / ˈeɪ pɛks ˈprɛd ə tər, -ˌtɔr /

noun

a carnivore that preys on other animals but has no natural predators of its own; the predator at the top of a particular food chain.

Sharks fill an important ecological niche as apex predators, keeping the population of other species from exploding.

First recorded in 1960–65

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023