heteroecious

British

/ ˌhɛtəˈriːʃəs /

adjective

(of parasites, esp rust fungi) undergoing different stages of the life cycle on different host species Compare autoecious

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

heteroecious Scientific

/ hĕt′ə-rē′shəs /

Relating to a parasite that spends different stages of its life cycle on different, usually unrelated hosts. The term is used especially of certain kinds of rust fungi, but may also be applied to other parasites like tapeworms.
Compare autoecious

Other Word Forms

heteroecism noun

Etymology

Origin of heteroecious

from _hetero- + -oecious, from Greek oikia house

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.

One species, S. heteroica, is heteroecious; the ascospores infecting the leaves of Vaccinium uliginosum, while the conidia which then arise infect only Ledum palustre.

From Project Gutenberg

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