megafauna en · NOUN
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s Proto-Hellenic *mégas Ancient Greek μέγᾰς (mégăs)der. English mega- English fauna English megafauna From mega- + fauna.
Meanings
-
The large animals of a given region or time, considered as a group.
The extinction of the Pleistocene megafauna had ended there long before it had in Europe, and so a "broad spectrum" of food collecting had been going on for some time.
1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 131:
- A treatise on such a group of large animals.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| megafauna | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| megafaunas | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
megafaunal · charismatic megafauna
Translations (10)
el μεγαπανίδα (large animals) · gl megafauna (large animals) · sv megafauna (large animals) · fi suureläimistö (large animals) · pt megafauna (large animals) · ro megafaună (large animals) · fi megafauna (large animals) · es megafauna (large animals) · fr mégafaune (large animals) · ka მეგაფაუნა (large animals)