water flea

Definition of water flea

: any of various small active dark or brightly colored aquatic crustaceans (such as a daphnia or cyclops)

Examples of water flea in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The researchers also tested water that had been brewed with the plastic tea bags on water fleas. — Aimee Picchi, CBS News, "Tea bags may release billions of microplastics into your cup of tea, scientists say," 27 Sep. 2019 As part of their study, the McGill team exposed water fleas, small aquatic organisms formally known as Daphnia magna, to various doses of microplastics and nanoplastics leached from tea bags. — Brigit Katz, Smithsonian, "Your Soothing Cup of Tea May Contain Billions of Microplastics," 28 Sep. 2019 Perch have also been suspending well off the lake bottom to feed on invertebrates such as spiny water fleas, midge larvae and mayfly larvae, rather than minnows. — D'arcy Egan, cleveland, "Lake Erie walleye hitting; yellow perch are hit-and-miss: Fishing Report for Sept. 20," 20 Sep. 2019 In this alternative state, predation is high, so minnow numbers are curbed; this allows water fleas to thrive (which suppresses algae) and bass hatchlings to reach maturity. — Quanta Magazine, "Nature’s Critical Warning System," 18 Nov. 2015 Biologists have noticed a distinct diet shift, with perch foraging on invertebrates such as spiny water fleas and midge and mayfly larvae instead of emerald shiner minnows and other small fish. — D'arcy Egan, cleveland.com, "Lake Erie walleye fishing ‘Golden Era’ officially returns with record catches, big hatches," 13 Sep. 2019 The yellow perch seem to be suspending in deeper water, feeding on water fleas and ignoring perch rigs tipped with emerald shiner minnows, historically a slam dunk bait for catching a 30-fish limit of perch. — D'arcy Egan, cleveland.com, "Lake Erie walleye on the move, but trophy fish still being caught: Aug. 9 Fishing Report," 9 Aug. 2019 The authors note that populations of small water fleas in the genus Daphnia, an important species in the lake food web, have declined precipitously since use of DDT began. — Jason Daley, Smithsonian, "Decades After DDT Was Banned, It Still Impacts Canadian Lakes," 15 June 2019 Peshkin’s own research focuses on the water flea, Latin name Daphnia, an insect barely visible to the naked eye. — Karen Weintraub, BostonGlobe.com, "A doctor wages personal and professional battles against aging," 23 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'water flea.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Cite this Entry

“Water flea.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/water%20flea. Accessed 28 Oct. 2020.

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