a combination of food chains that integrate to form a network
food web in American English
Ecology
all the individual food chains in a community
food web in American English
noun
Ecology
a series of organisms related by predator-prey and consumer-resource interactions; the entirety of interrelated food chains in an ecological community
Also called: food cycle
Word origin
[1960–65]This word is first recorded in the period 1960–65. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: Pap test, bicycle kick, deinstitutionalize, go-go, zip code
Examples of 'food web' in a sentence
food web
They have been the critical organisms in the food web structure.
Globe and Mail (2003)
Destructive fishing practices, such as trawling and depletion of key fish species in the marine food web, are among the greatest threats to coral reefs.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Without sharks, the balance of the entire ocean food web may topple, creating a devastating effect.
Times, Sunday Times (2018)
Food webs already seem to be simplifying.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Marine food webs are sometimes traced using the flow of energy that passes through them.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
But the effects of poisoning the seabed and the water column are still cascading through the food webs.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
The relative influence of these opposite processes on the dynamics of food webs remains a lively topic of debate.
The Times Literary Supplement (2016)
Ecosystems with complex food webs were thriving, and paleontologists are only just beginning to document the oddities that evolved during this time.
2019, 'Prehistoric Crocodile Cousin Crushed the Bones of Its Prey Long Before T. Rex', Smithsonianhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/prehistoric-crocodile-cousin-crushed-bones-its-prey-long-t-rex-180971423/