Meaning & use
Phototactic
Last updated
Describing an organism's movement in response to light, whether toward it or away from it.
See it in a sentence
Many moths are phototactic, drawn instinctively toward bright light sources at night.
The phototactic algae drifted toward the sunlit surface of the pond each morning.
A note on using this word
Built from Greek photo- ('light') and taxis ('arrangement, movement'); biologists distinguish 'positive phototactic' organisms that move toward light from 'negative' ones that flee it.
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