Frugivory

Definition

The consumption of fruit as a primary or significant dietary strategy; also, the ecological role and evolutionary interactions associated with fruit-eating. In arthropods, frugivory drives mutualisms with plants (seed dispersal, pollination services) and underlies the ecology of many pest species. The behavior spans strict frugivory (exclusive fruit diet) to facultative frugivory (fruit consumed opportunistically among other foods).

Etymology

From Latin frux, frugis 'fruit' + -vory (from vorare 'to devour'), modeled on carnivory, herbivory.

Example

Adult Drosophila fruit flies practice frugivory, feeding on yeasts and sugars from rotting fruit; their larval development depends entirely on the fungal and microbial communities that colonize fallen fruit, making frugivory a cornerstone of their life history and a key factor in their global pest status.

Synonyms

• fruit-eating
• fruitivory

Related Terms

• folivory
• Granivory
• nectivory
• myrmecophagy
• mutualism
• seed dispersal
• Drosophila
• tephritid
• butterfly proboscis

Usage Notes

Distinguish frugivory from nectarivory (liquid feeding on floral nectaries) and granivory (seed-eating); some insects blur these categories by feeding on fruit pulp versus seeds. In entomology, frugivory is often discussed in contexts of agricultural pest management, invasive species ecology, and coevolution with fleshy-fruited plants. The adjective form is 'frugivorous'; a frugivore is the organism exhibiting frugivory.