filter-feeder

Sifts water nutrition

A filter-feeder is an animal that obtains food by straining small organisms or particles from water.

Baleen whales, clams, and flamingos are filter-feeders, each using specialized anatomy—baleen plates, gills, or beaks—to sift nutrients from large volumes of water.

The term appears in biology and ecology: Filter-feeders play a crucial role in maintaining water quality.

baleen

whalebone

Keratin plates from filter-feeders

humpbackBaleen whale species
blue whaleLargest mammal on Earth
fin whaleGiant baleen cetacean

minke · gray whale · right whale · bowhead · keratin · megafauna · cetacean · mammal · krill · migration

food-source

krill

Small marine crustaceans

copepodMinute planktonic crustacean
phytoplanktonPhotosynthetic aquatic drifters
zooplanktonDrifting aquatic microorganisms

diatom · detritus · algae · dinoflagellate · bacteria · microplankton · particulates · protist · cyanobacteria · microorganism

anatomy

cilia

Hairlike cellular projections

setaeStiff hairlike structures
siphonLiquid transfer tube
tentaclesFlexible grasping appendages

papillae · mantle · pumping

invertebrate

sponge

Absorbent cleaning material

coralMarine skeletal formation
tunicateCoated marine invertebrate
sea-squirtFilter-feeding marine invertebrate

mussel · oyster · clam · scallop · barnacle · brachiopod · bryozoan · polychaete · anemone · cockle

mechanism

straining

Exerting intense effort

sievingFiltering through mesh
trappingCatching with concealed devices
pumpingForcing flow mechanically

retention · ingestion · sorting · rejection

filter-feeder

whalebone

krill

cilia

sponge

straining

filter-feeder

Opposites

Categories

Family