Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A trailing or climbing spiny shrub (Euphorbia milii) native to Madagascar and cultivated as a houseplant, having showy flower clusters with usually red, petallike bracts.
- noun The Christ's thorn.
- noun A spiny starfish (Acanthaster planci) of the Pacific and Indian Oceans that feeds on coral polyps.
Etymologies
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Examples
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Dressed in flowing white, wearing a crown-of-thorns headdress and posing with arms outstretched, crucifixion-style, Lilo was snapped by style photographer Terry Richardson for the new issue of Purple Magazine.
Lindsay Lohan Nude Threesome Photoshoot Purple Magazine 2010
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The need for such research has become more critical in recent years with the Reef's inclusion on the World Heritage List, concern resulting from crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks and intensifying human demands placed on the resource.
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Without the fish populations to keep the levels of crown-of-thorns in balance, the sea stars explode in numbers.
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Unlike any other starfish, crown-of-thorns prey directly on live coral.
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Divers have also attempted to kill the crown-of-thorns by injecting them with poison.
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The massive loss of corals by crown-of-thorns is taking a big toll on the tourist economy.
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This means that regulating the fishing practices around the world would be useful in preventing the crown-of-thorns from destroying reefs.
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Some people have taken the matter into their own hands and taken groups of divers out to the reefs in order to kill the crown-of-thorns themselves.
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Sodium bisulphate is currently the best choice to poison crown-of-thorns with, since it eventually breaks down in seawater.
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Another cause of outbreaks is the overfishing of some of the crown-of-thorns main predators.
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