Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- In botany, characteristic of, affected by, or exhibiting nyctitropism.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective (Bot.) Turning or bending at night into special positions.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective botany Turning or bending at
night into special positions.
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
From Ancient Greek, meaning "night-turning".
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Examples
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From their vertical nyctitropic position the leaves of this Phyllanthus might return to horizontality, traversing 90 deg, in two ways, either to their own or to the opposite side of the branch; on the latter way no rotation would be required, while on the former each leaf must rotate on its own axis in order that its upper surface may be turned upwards.
More Letters of Charles Darwin — Volume 2 Charles Darwin 1845
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One species of Phyllanthus takes up in sunshine the nyctitropic attitude of another species.
More Letters of Charles Darwin — Volume 2 Charles Darwin 1845
odessa commented on the word nyctitropic
Turning or bending at night into special positions.
Nyctitropic movements of plants usually consist in a folding or drooping of the leaves, the advantage being in lessening the radiation of heat.
Origin: From Gr, night + turning.
Source: Websters Dictionary
(01 Mar 1998)
http://cancerweb.ncl.ac.uk/cgi-bin/omd?nyctitropic
December 15, 2007