Difference Between Predation and Parasitism

The key difference between predation and parasitism is that predators kill and consume their prey, while parasites live on or inside their host organism and feed off its resources.

Predation vs parasitism

Here are a Few main differences between predation and parasitism:

Characteristic	Predation	Parasitism
Relationship	In predation, one organism kills and eats the other organism.	In parasitism, the parasite lives on or inside the host organism.
Outcome	Predation generally results in the death of the prey	Parasitism does not necessarily lead to the death of the host, although it can cause harm and negative effects on the host.
Dependence	Predators are generally not dependent on their prey for survival	Parasites are completely dependent on their host for survival.
Duration	Predation is usually a short-term interaction	Parasitism can last for a longer time, sometimes even the entire lifespan of the host.
Impact	Predation typically has a larger impact on the population of the prey species	Parasitism has a smaller impact but can still have significant effects on the health and behavior of the host.
Behavior	Predators often actively hunt and pursue their prey	parasites may wait for a host to come to them or use other methods to attach themselves to a host.
Number of hosts	A predator may attack multiple prey during its lifetime	Parasite usually has only one host at a time or a small number of hosts over its lifetime
Transmission	Predation does not involve transmission of the predator to the prey	Parasitism can involve transmission of the parasite from one host to another.
Resistance	Prey may evolve defenses against predators, such as camouflage or toxic chemicals	Hosts may evolve defenses against parasites, such as immune responses or behavioral adaptations.