filter feeder
noun
: an animal (such as a clam or baleen whale) that obtains its food by filtering organic matter or minute organisms from a current of water that passes through some part of its system
Examples of filter feeder in a Sentence
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The filter feeders have greatly affected the ecology of the lake, and in some spots, they are caked onto shipwrecks and other artifacts, obscuring the details that make the wrecks come alive, Schott said.
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Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 2 May 2024
Humpback whales are filter feeders and eat small fish and crustaceans, mostly krill.
—Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 3 Apr. 2024
Baleen whales—filter feeders that include blue whales, fin whales and humpback whales—make noises via a larynx, or voice box.
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2024
As previously reported, the largest shark alive today, reaching up to 20 meters long, is the whale shark, a sedate filter feeder.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 22 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for filter feeder 
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Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 2 May 2024
Humpback whales are filter feeders and eat small fish and crustaceans, mostly krill.
—Clare Mulroy, USA TODAY, 3 Apr. 2024
Baleen whales—filter feeders that include blue whales, fin whales and humpback whales—make noises via a larynx, or voice box.
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2024
As previously reported, the largest shark alive today, reaching up to 20 meters long, is the whale shark, a sedate filter feeder.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 22 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for filter feeder
Dictionary Entries Near filter feeder
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“Filter feeder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/filter%20feeder. Accessed 15 Nov. 2024.
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