suspension feeder

biology

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July 14, 2026

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A suspension feeder is an animal that obtains food from material suspended in water. These animals typically possess specialized structures to strain their food from the water. This feeding method is common among invertebrates, such as bivalves like clams, which use their gills to filter suspended particles. Other examples include bristle worms with ciliated tentacles and crustaceans like brine shrimp that use hairlike setae on their limbs to filter food. Some larger vertebrates, like flamingos and baleen whales, also employ filter feeding strategies.12

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marine ecosystem
Benthos
…the plankton above are the suspension feeders (e.g., bivalves, ophiuroids, crinoids), and those that consume other fauna in the benthic assemblage are predators (e.g., starfish, gastropods). Organisms between 0.1 and 1 millimetre constitute the meiobenthos. These larger microbes, which include foraminiferans, turbellarians, and polychaetes, frequently dominate benthic food chains, filling…
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…the plankton above are the suspension feeders (e.g., bivalves, ophiuroids, crinoids), and those that consume other fauna in the benthic assemblage are predators (e.g., starfish, gastropods). Organisms between 0.1 and 1 millimetre constitute the meiobenthos. These larger microbes, which include foraminiferans, turbellarians, and polychaetes, frequently dominate benthic food chains, filling…
Read More