water flea
noun
: 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
Birdseed and the plants that attract songbirds aren’t a big draw for waterfowl, as most prefer beetles, snails, water fleas and other insects found on the edges of lakes and ponds.
—
Renee Elder, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024
To test for some of the potential adverse effects of these plastics, the researchers exposed a model organism called a water flea, or Daphnia, to different concentrations of the microplastics leached from the tea bags.
—Anna Funk, Discover Magazine, 26 Sep. 2019
Not bad for a water flea.
—Andrew Moseman, Discover Magazine, 4 Feb. 2011
Staring out of your screen is the eye of a water flea, a largely transparent crustacean that can reach half an inch in length.
—Discover Magazine, 21 Feb. 2012
But this one is special: The genome of the water flea contains a staggering 30,907 genes—the most ever seen in an animal, and about 8,000 more than humans have.
—Andrew Moseman, Discover Magazine, 4 Feb. 2011
Species like the fishhook water flea and the bloody red shrimp — which could be even worse than invasive carp.
—Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco, Journal Sentinel, 26 Aug. 2022
The next year, in 1982, overseas ships were blamed for bringing into the lakes the spiny water flea that has ravaged native zooplankton and the little fish that depend upon them.
—Dan Egan, jsonline.com, 2 Sep. 2021
Andrei Savitsky's video of a water flea giving birth to cubs won third place in the competition.
—Elizabeth Gamillo, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Aug. 2021
Renee Elder, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024
To test for some of the potential adverse effects of these plastics, the researchers exposed a model organism called a water flea, or Daphnia, to different concentrations of the microplastics leached from the tea bags.
—Anna Funk, Discover Magazine, 26 Sep. 2019
Not bad for a water flea.
—Andrew Moseman, Discover Magazine, 4 Feb. 2011
Staring out of your screen is the eye of a water flea, a largely transparent crustacean that can reach half an inch in length.
—Discover Magazine, 21 Feb. 2012
But this one is special: The genome of the water flea contains a staggering 30,907 genes—the most ever seen in an animal, and about 8,000 more than humans have.
—Andrew Moseman, Discover Magazine, 4 Feb. 2011
Species like the fishhook water flea and the bloody red shrimp — which could be even worse than invasive carp.
—Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco, Journal Sentinel, 26 Aug. 2022
The next year, in 1982, overseas ships were blamed for bringing into the lakes the spiny water flea that has ravaged native zooplankton and the little fish that depend upon them.
—Dan Egan, jsonline.com, 2 Sep. 2021
Andrei Savitsky's video of a water flea giving birth to cubs won third place in the competition.
—Elizabeth Gamillo, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Aug. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'water flea.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Water flea.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/water%20flea. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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