Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Relating to, designating, or characterized by a tail fin having two symmetrical lobes extending from the end of the vertebral column, as in most bony fishes.
from The Century Dictionary.
- In ichthyology, having the caudal fin symmetrical as to its upper and under halves: opposed to heterocercal. See
heterocercal , diphycercal, hypural.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective (Zoöl.) Having the tail nearly or quite symmetrical, the vertebral column terminating near its base; -- opposed to
heterocercal .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective ichthyology Describing the
symmetric tail of afish that has twolobes extending from the end of thevertebral column.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective possessing a symmetrical tail that extends beyond the end of the vertebral column (as in most bony fishes)
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
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Examples
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These are the even-lobed, or homocercal (Fig. 68), and the uneven-lobed, or heterocercal (Fig. 69).
Darwin, and After Darwin (Vol. 1 and 3, of 3) An Exposition of the Darwinian Theory and a Discussion of Post-Darwinian Questions George John Romanes 1871
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Now, in the development of a teleost fish (Fig. 68), as has been shown by Alexander Agassiz, the tail-fin is first like Fig. 70; then becomes heterocercal, like Fig. 69; and, finally, becomes homocercal like Fig. 68.
Darwin, and After Darwin (Vol. 1 and 3, of 3) An Exposition of the Darwinian Theory and a Discussion of Post-Darwinian Questions George John Romanes 1871
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The lecturer dwelt chiefly on the argument of Agassiz, which he summarises as follows: "Homocercal fishes have in their embryonic state heterocercal tails; therefore heterocercality is, so far, a mark of an embryonic state as compared with homocercality, and the earlier heterocercal fish are embryonic as compared with the later homocercal."
More Letters of Charles Darwin — Volume 1 Charles Darwin 1845
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