crabeater

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word crabeater. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word crabeater, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say crabeater in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word crabeater you have here. The definition of the word crabeater will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofcrabeater, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
See also: crab-eater

English

Rachycentron canadum
Ixobrychus minutus
crabeater seal (Lobodon carcinophagus)

Etymology

From crab +‎ eater.

Noun

crabeater (plural crabeaters)

  1. A cobia or sergeant fish (Rachycentron canadum).
  2. A little bittern; a bird of species Ixobrychus minutus.
  3. An Antarctic seal (Lobodon carcinophagus) that feeds on krill.
    • 2002, Maurice Burton, Robert Burton, International Wildlife Encyclopedia: Chickaree - crabs, →ISBN, page 564:
      Although crabeaters often gather on the ice in large numbers, pupping takes place in small groups.
    • 2002, David G. Campbell, The Crystal Desert: Summers in Antarctica, →ISBN:
      Although few observations have been made of feeding crabeaters, it is assumed that they take bites from a swarm of krill, extracting one or two. Crabeaters sometimes feed collectively, which may increase the efficiency of their hunt.
    • 2013, Roger Kirkwood, Simon Goldsworthy, Fur Seals and Sea Lions, →ISBN, page 45:
      Also distinguishing them is that crabeaters often have moderate scaring around the head and chest from fights with conspecifics and deep scaring along the body resulting from close encounters with leopard seals.

Derived terms