Meaning & use
troglofauna
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Meaning
noununcountabletechnicalbiology
The animals that live their whole lives in caves or other underground spaces.
Grammar: Used as an uncountable noun: troglofauna is found in caves.
Patterns
- troglofauna in something
- a species of troglofauna
Researchers recorded the troglofauna living in the limestone cave.
The troglofauna of this region includes blind beetles and pale spiders.
Pollution can threaten troglofauna that depend on a single cave system.
Common combinations
- cave troglofauna
- The cave troglofauna survive on nutrients washed in by water.
- study troglofauna
- Biologists study troglofauna to understand how life adapts to darkness.
- troglofauna species
- Several troglofauna species are known from only one cave.
- troglofauna habitat
- Mining can destroy troglofauna habitat.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cave fauna
- A broader everyday phrase for animals in caves; troglofauna is the technical term for those that complete their whole life cycle underground.
Word family
- troglobite noun
- An animal that lives only in caves.
- troglophile noun
- An animal that lives in caves but can also survive outside them.
- trogloxene noun
- An animal that visits caves but cannot live there permanently.
Commonly confused: troglofauna or troglodyte?
troglofauna vs troglodyte
Troglodyte can mean a cave dweller or, informally, an old-fashioned person; it does not mean the whole group of cave animals.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'troglofauna' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Troglofauna means the animals living in caves, so the sentence about blind beetles and spiders fits. Option D is wrong because troglofauna are animals, not rock; options An and C describe everyday pets or groceries, which the word does not mean.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “troglofauna”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.