parasitoid

[ par-uh-si-toid, -sahy- ]

noun

1. an organism that practices parasitoidism.

adjective

1. of or relating to a parasite, especially one practicing parasitoidism.

parasitoid

/ ˈpærəsɪˌtɔːd /

noun

1. zoology an animal, esp an insect, that is parasitic during the larval stage of its life cycle but becomes free-living when adult

parasitoid

/ păr′ə-sĭ-toid′,-sī′toid /

1. Any of various insects, such as the ichneumon fly, whose larvae are parasites that eventually kill their hosts. The adult parasitoid deposits an egg on or inside the body of its host, typically the larva of another arthropod. When the egg hatches, the parasitoid larva feeds on the host's tissues, gradually killing it.

Word History and Origins

Origin of parasitoid¹

1920–25; < New Latin Parasitoïdea (1913); parasite, -oid

Example Sentences

On the same day, another op-ed in The New York Times depicted the U.S. as a lion engaged in combat with Iran – characterized as a “parasitoid wasp” – and Hamas – portrayed as a “trap-door spider,” executing rapid, predatory maneuvers.

From Salon

Friedman's piece in the New York Times entitled, "Understanding the Middle East Through the Animal Kingdom," posited Iran as a metaphorical "parasitoid wasp" with proxies in Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq, and Syria as caterpillars.

From Salon

By the time Matvey Nikelshparg was 13, he was obsessed with parasitoid wasps, tiny insects that lay their eggs on or inside other bugs.

From New York Times

Mita and Hisasue, along with their colleague, Dr. Thai-Hong Pham of the National Museum of Nature, Vietnam, conducted field surveys at six sites across Vietnam, setting traps and using nets to capture the tiny parasitoid wasps.

From Science Daily

While we are more familiar with hunting wasps like yellowjackets, with their dramatic black and yellow stripes and painful stings, parasitoid wasps make up the vast majority of wasp species.

From Science Daily