Invertebrates, especially arthropods, are animals that provide many nutrients to the animals that consume them, such as high-quality proteins and fats. In the animal kingdom there are many beings who feed on insects and other invertebrates, including humans, and we do not need to visit Countries of East Asia or Central America to observe it, because in South America itself, for example, it is very common to find these animals.
In this peritoAnimal article we will define what insectivorous animals are, what their characteristics are, and we will also show some of the animals that appear on the list of insectivorous animals.
- The term “insectivorous” refers to animals whose feeding consists of eating invertebrates.
- Such as arachnids.
- Worms.
- Snails and also insects.
- Insectivorous animals are those that.
- Being vertebrate animals.
- Base their diet on invertebrates and could not survive without them.
- Other animals use invertebrates as a food supplement with high protein content.
See some examples of vertebrate and invertebrate animals in this Animal Expert article.
Determining the general characteristics of insectivorous animals is a very complicated task, as it is possible to find such animals in all groups of vertebrates, from fish to mammals. Some will have all these qualities and others will have only one:
The diet of insectivorous animals includes mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds and fish. Do you want to meet them? Now let’s talk in detail about these animals and some representative species:
In mammals it is possible to find several examples of insectivores, each with its own characteristics and peculiarities. Insectivorous bats detect prey, often moths, by echolocation and are usually very small bats. Some of their prey have also developed an echolocation organ, which could confuse bats in their attempts to capture them. Examples include the large horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum) or the fake Australian vampire (Macroderma gigas).
Another example of insectivorous mammals is shrew, such as common shrew (Chronocid russula), garden shrew (Crocidura suaveolens) or dwarf shrew (Sorex minutus). They are fearsome nocturnal predators for invertebrates because their smell is foolproof.
Hedgehogs are also insectivorous animals. In fact, more and more people are adopting hedgehogs as pets, despite their nocturnal habits and insect-based diets. Some species of hedgehogs are:
Similarly, in addition to its developed nose, the anteater also has a long tongue that can be inserted into the anteguero or termite mound. Some species are the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), the giant anteater (Cyclops didactylus) and the giant anteater (Tamandua tetradactyla).
To conclude this section on insectivorous mammals, let’s share a video from National Geographic Spain showing another insectivorous animal, pangolin, which feeds on ants and termites:
Insectivorous birds are generally characterized by the presence of vibrations near the beak, such as swallows, martinets or airplanes. Others have developed a long, sticky tongue to capture invertebrates in tree cavities, such as the green bill.
Here are some species of insectivorous birds
There are also insectivorous reptiles and a clear example are chameleons. These animals combine their long tongue with spectacular vision, being able to move the eyes independently. However, there are many other species of insectivorous reptiles worth living:
Frogs and toads are also insectivorous animals, in most cases. In addition to language, vision, how they detect animals and the mechanism they use to differentiate food from non-food have been widely studied. Some species of insectivorous amphibians are:
Fish also include insectivorous species. Many freshwater fish feed on developing larvae in the water. Other fish, called archer fish, are able to throw jets of water to catch the insects that have come out of them, so that they fall and can catch them.
If you would like to read articles similar to, we recommend that you visit our Curiosities section of the animal world.