zoophilous
|zoo-phil-ous|
🇺🇸
/ˌzoʊˈfɪləs/
🇬🇧
/ˌzuːˈfɪləs/
animal-loving / animal-pollinated
Etymology
'zoophilous' originates from Modern Latin/Neo-Latin 'zoophilus', ultimately from Greek 'zōophilos', where 'zōon' meant 'animal' and 'philos' meant 'loving'.
'zōophilos' (Greek) passed into Late/Neo-Latin as 'zoophilus' and then into English as the adjective-forming 'zoophilous', used especially in scientific contexts.
Initially it meant 'animal-loving' in a general sense, but in modern scientific usage it has come to be used specifically for organisms or structures that are 'pollinated by or attracted to animals'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
in botany and ecology: pollinated or fertilized by animals (as opposed to by wind).
Many tropical orchids are zoophilous, relying on insects and birds for pollination.
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Adjective 2
having an attraction to or association with animals; tending toward animals (used in biological descriptions of behavior or ecology).
The beetle is zoophilous and frequently visits mammal burrows to feed.
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Last updated: 2025/08/27 12:13