zooplankton
noun
zoo·plank·ton
ˌzō-ə-ˈplaŋ(k)-tən
-ˌtän
plural zooplankton also zooplanktons
: freely floating or weakly swimming typically minute aquatic protozoans and animals (such as copepods, rotifers, and arrow worms) or the eggs or larvae of aquatic animals (such as anemones, mollusks, and fish) : plankton composed of animals
… numerous varieties of adult gamefish depend on zooplankton for a substantial portion of their diets throughout their lives.—Byron W. Dalrymple
Phytoplankton exhale life-giving oxygen and are consumed as food by zooplankton and small fish, which, in turn, are eaten by larger fish.—Kenneth R. Weiss
Right whales eat zooplankton, which are tiny creatures that float along in the water column, by straining huge amounts of sea water through their baleen.—Wendall Waters
compare phytoplankton
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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