scavenger

scav·en·ger

noun \ˈska-vən-jər\

Definition of SCAVENGER

1

chiefly British : a person employed to remove dirt and refuse from streets

2

: one that scavenges: as a : a garbage collector b : a junk collector c : a chemically active substance acting to make innocuous or remove an undesirable substance

3

: an organism that typically feeds on refuse or carrion

Origin of SCAVENGER

alteration of earlier scavager, from Anglo-French scawageour collector of scavage (duty collected from non-resident street merchants), from skawage scavage, from Middle French dialect (Flanders) escauver to inspect, from Middle Dutch scouwen; akin to Old English scēawian to look at — more at show

First Known Use: 1530

Other Ecology Terms

Malthusian, anthropogenic, biomass, carbon footprint, crepuscular, niche, sere, symbiosis, taiga, tundra