THE STEINHART AQUARIUM - Gulf of Guinea Science ...

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A Docent Field Guide to the Species of the Steinhart Aquarium
abyssal pertaining to the great depths of the ocean
advanced character state see derived character state
allele one of the variant forms of a gene at a particular
locus, or location, on a chromosome
allelopathic the inhibition of grown in one species of
plant or animal by chemicals produced by another
species
alternation of generations life cycle in which haploid
and diploid generations alternate with each other;
common in ferns and some algae
amplexus the mating clasp of the male frog or toad: he
clings to the back of the female and fertilizes her eggs
as she ejects them into the water
anadromous moving from the ocean to fresh water to
spawn (e.g., salmon)
anal fin median, unpaired, ventrally located fin that
lies behind the anus; most often provides stability
aposematic serving as a warning, with reference particularly
to colors and structures that signal possession
of defensive devices
asexual reproduction a type of reproduction involving
only one parent that usually produces genetically
identical offspring, a clone. Asexual reproduction occurs
without meiosis or syngamy, and may happen
though budding, by the division of a single cell, or
the breakup of an entire organism into two or more
parts.
asymmetrical not symmetrical; one side is not the
mirror image of the other (e.g. most sponges)
barbel fleshy projection near the mouth, chin or snout
as in catfish, generally used for locating food
batch spawner a fish that sheds eggs more than once
during a spawning season
benthic pertaining to the sea bottom and the organisms
that inhabit the bottom of a body of water
GLOSSARY
bilateral symmetry a shape in which the left and right
sides of a longitudinal plane that runs through an organism’s
body are approximately mirror images of
each other
brackish pertaining to water less salty than sea water
because of the mixing of fresh and salt water (e.g., in
an estuary)
budding a form of asexual reproduction, especially by
pinching off a small part of the parent
calcareous consisting of or containing calcium carbonate
or calcium
calyx the cuplike structure of a colonial coral from
which the individual polyp protrudes and into which
it can usually be withdrawn
camouflage avoidance or reduction of detection by
means of blending with the environment
carapace a chitinous or bony case or shell covering the
back or part of the back of an animal, such as a crab
or turtle
carnivore an animal that feeds on other animals
cartilage a translucent elastic tissue that composes the
skeleton of the embryos and very young of vertebrates;
for the most part is converted to bone in higher vertebrates,
a notable exception being sharks and rays
catadromous moving from fresh water to the ocean to
spawn (e.g., American eel)
caudal relating to or being a tail; situated toward the
hind part of the body
caudal fin the tail fin, which, for most fish, functions to
provide thrust and acceleration
caudal peduncle slender part of a fish’s body just
ahead of the caudal fin.
character heritable trait possessed by an organism
cephalization an evolutionary tendency toward concentration
of sensory and neural organs in the anterior
head