ecological niche
Americannoun
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Different organisms may compete for the same niche. For example, in a forest there may be a niche for an organism that can fly and eat nectar from blossoms. This niche may be filled by some sort of bird, or an insect, or even a mammal such as a bat.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This ability allows Balanophora to spread quickly into the narrow ecological niche it prefers: dark, moist forest undergrowth where few other plants can survive.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 20, 2025
After analyzing this data, along with information on constant temperatures inside the caves, and by using ecological niche modeling, the researchers concluded that subterranean spider species have a bleak outlook.
From Salon ● Jan. 22, 2024
Hopefully some possible futures include an ecological niche for humans.
From Scientific American ● Nov. 7, 2023
In some areas, species have had tens of millions of years to migrate and specialize, “filling each ecological niche completely.”
From National Geographic ● Oct. 13, 2023
The Earth then was full of awesome, nightmarish lizards—the dinosaurs, immensely successful creatures, which filled virtually every ecological niche.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
