mallophagous en · ADJ
Meanings
-
(not-comparable) Feeding on feathers.
The bird Ibis falcinellus is parasitized by at least seven species of mallophagous insects, each of which is specialized on a single feather type.
1988 January 14, T. de Meeûs, “Santa Rosalia Revisited: or Why Are There So Many Kinds of Parasites in 'The Garden of Earthly Delights'?”, in Parasitology Today: