omnivore

Dictionary: om·ni·vore (ŏm'nə-vôr', -vōr') pronunciation

An omnivorous person or animal.
One that takes in everything available, as with the mind.

[From New Latin Omnivora, omnivores, from neuter pl. of Latin omnivorus, omnivorous. See omnivorous.]

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World of the Body: omnivore

Omnivore strictly means one who eats all things (Latin omni: all), but is used to describe those people or communities whose diet is not restricted to either animal or vegetable sources.

— Stuart Judge

Geography Dictionary: omnivore

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An animal which eats both plant and animal matter.

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: omnivore

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Animal that eats both plant and animal matter. Most omnivorous species do not have highly specialized food-processing structures or food-gathering behaviour. Many animals generally considered carnivores are actually omnivorous; for example, the red fox eats fruits and berries as well as mammals and birds. See also herbivore.

For more information on omnivore, visit Britannica.com.

Science Dictionary: omnivore

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(om-nuh-vawr)

An animal whose normal diet includes both plants and animals. Human beings and bears, for instance, are omnivores.

Veterinary Dictionary: omnivore

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An omnivorous animal.

Wikipedia: Omnivore

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This article is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. WikiProject Animal or the Animal Portal may be able to help recruit one. (April 2008)

Ravens are omnivores.

Omnivores (from Latin: omne all, everything; vorare to devour) are species that eat both plants and animals as their primary food source. They are opportunistic, general feeders not specifically adapted to eat and digest either meat or plant material exclusively.^[1] Pigs are one well-known example of an omnivore.^[2] Crows are another example of an omnivore that many people see every day.^[3] Humans are also omnivores.^[1]^[4]

Although there are reported cases of herbivores eating meat matter as well as examples of carnivores eating plants, the classification refers to the adaptations and main food source of the species in general so these exceptions do not make either individual animals nor the species as a whole omnivores.

Most bear species are considered omnivores, but individuals' diets can range from almost exclusively herbivorous to almost exclusively carnivorous depending on what food sources are available locally and seasonally. Polar bears can be classified as carnivores while pandas almost exclusively eat bamboo and are therefore herbivores, although Giant Pandas will eat some meat from time to time.

Species considered omnivorous

This section is missing citations or needs footnotes. Please help add inline citations to guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (December 2008)

Various mammals are omnivorous by nature such as bears; coatis; hedgehogs; opossums; pigs; some primates including chimpanzees and humans; raccoons; some rodents including chipmunks^[5], mice^[6], rats^[7], and squirrels^[8]; skunks; sloths.

Various birds whose diet varies from berries and nectar to insects, worms, fish, small rodents, and snakes — cassowarys; chickens; corvids including crows, magpies, ravens, and rooks; keas; rallidae; rheas.

Some lizards; some turtles.

Some fish such as piranhas.

Some insects and other invertebrates are also omnivores.

References

^ ^a ^b Adapted from a talk by John McArdle, Ph.D.. "Humans are Omnivores". Vegetarian Resource Group. http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/omni.htm. Retrieved on 2007-12-29.
^ Brent Huffman. "Family Suidae (Pigs)". UltimateUngulate.com. http://www.ultimateungulate.com/Cetartiodactyla/Suidae.html. Retrieved on 2007-12-29.
^ Seattle Audubon Society. "Family Corvidae (Crows/Ravens)". BirdWeb.org. http://birdweb.org/birdweb/bird_details.aspx?id=318. Retrieved on 2007-12-31.
^ [1]
^ "Eastern Chipmunk". Wonder Club. http://www.wonderclub.com/Wildlife/mammals/easternchipmunk.htm. Retrieved on 2009-01-01.
^ "Florida Mouse". United States Fauna. http://www.unitedstatesfauna.com/floridamouse.php. Retrieved on 2009-01-01.
^ "Brown Rat". Science Daily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/articles/b/brown_rat.htm. Retrieved on 2009-01-01.
^ "Tree Squirrels". The Humane Society of the United States. http://www.hsus.org/wildlife/a_closer_look_at_wildlife/tree_squirrels.html. Retrieved on 2009-01-01.

This animal-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Feeding behaviours

Carnivores

adult	Hematophagy · Insectivore · Lepidophagy · Man-eater · Molluscivore · Mucophagy · Myrmecophagy · Ophiophagy · Osteophagy · Piscivore · Spongivore

reproductive	Oophagy · Ovophagy · Paedophagy · Placentophagy

cannibalistic	Autophagy · Cannibalism · Human cannibalism · Self-cannibalism · Sexual cannibalism

Herbivores

Folivore · Frugivore · Graminivore · Granivore · Nectarivore · Palynivore · Xylophagy

Others

Bacterivore · Coprophagia · Detritivore · Fungivore · Geophagy · Omnivore

Methods

Apex predator · Bottom feeding · Browsing · Hypercarnivore · Filter feeding · Grazing · Kleptoparasitism · Scavenging · Trophallaxis

Predation · Antipredator adaptation · Carnivorous plant · Carnivorous fungus · Carnivorous protist · Category:Eating behaviors

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Translations: Omnivore

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - altædende

Nederlands (Dutch)
alleseter

Français (French)
n. - omnivore

Deutsch (German)
n. - Allesfresser

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - παμφάγος (άνθρωπος, ζώο)

Italiano (Italian)
onnivoro

Português (Portuguese)
n. - onívoro (m)

Русский (Russian)
всеядный

Español (Spanish)
n. - omnívoro

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - allätare

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
不偏食的人

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 不偏食的人

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 탐식가, 잡식성의 동물

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 貧食な人, 雑食動物

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) حيوان آكل كل شئ‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮ניזון מהכל, בעיקר מחי ומצומח כאחת (בעל-חיים), מוצא שימוש לכל דבר‬

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		Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		World of the Body. The Oxford Companion to the Body. Copyright © 2001, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Read more
		Geography Dictionary. A Dictionary of Geography. Copyright © Susan Mayhew 1992, 1997, 2004. All rights reserved. Read more
		Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Science Dictionary. The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved. Read more
		Veterinary Dictionary. Saunders Comprehensive Veterinary Dictionary 3rd Edition. Copyright © 2007 by D.C. Blood, V.P. Studdert and C.C. Gay, Elsevier. All rights reserved. Read more
		Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Omnivore". Read more
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