superparasitismn.
/ˌsuːpəˈparəsᵻtɪz(ə)m/, /ˌsjuːpəˈparəsᵻtɪz(ə)m/, U.S. /ˌsupərˈpɛrəsəˌtɪz(ə)m/, /ˌsupərˈpɛrəˌsaɪˌtɪz(ə)m/ Biology.
1. Parasitism of one parasitic organism on another; = hyperparasitism n. at hyperparasite n. Derivatives. rare.
ΚΠ
1891 Cent. Dict. Superparasitism, the infestation of parasites by other parasites; hyperparasitism.
1931 Sci. Monthly Aug. 152/1 The superparasitism of insects becomes analogous, in the biting satire of Swift, to plagiarists, the thieves who in turn become the victims of other thieves.
2006 J. T. Costa Other Insect Societies xi. 288 Superparasitism—parasitism of parasites—is thereby avoided.
2. Chiefly Entomology. Parasitism of an individual host by more than one parasite or parasitoid of the same species.
ΚΠ
1910 Jrnl. Econ. Entomol. 3 89 For the present it is merely intended to propose the term superparasitism to designate these phenomena [sc. double parasitism of moths].
1954 Oikos 5 199 It is obvious that superparasitism must have occurred, and..as many as three P. dubius larvae were found to be parasitising on the same host.
2009 Florida Entomologist 92 58 At most 1 larva of L. bicolor developed successfully on each host, so superparasitism is a disadvantage.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, June 2012; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1891