DDL Dictionary

Achene: (a KEEN) A dry fruit containing only one seed. The sunflower is an example of a plant that produces an achene. The structure that is commonly called the sunflower seed is actually the fruit of the sunflower. The kernal (the part we eat), inside the tough, woody seed, is the true seed.
Acorn: The fruit produced by oak trees. Acorns are a type of nut.
Adipose fin: (A di po s) This is a soft fin located behind the dorsal fin in some fishes. Not all fish have an adipose fin.
Agrarian: (uh GRAR ee un) Relating to the land and how people use it for agriculture or development.
Algae: (AL gee) Organisms living in fresh water and marine environments which go through photosynthesis. They were once considered plants, but are now in a different category because they have no roots, stems or leaves. Algae provide food and oxygen for many creatures that live in the same environment. Some examples of algae are seaweed and pond scum. [Algae is the plural of the word alga].
Alkaline/Acidic: (AL ka line) / (uh SID ik) Soils and water may be characterized as alkaline or acidic depending on the relative number of hydrogen and hydroxide ions that it contains. Soils with more hydrogen than hydroxide would be considered acidic, while those with more hydroxide than hydrogen would be basic. The level of these ions in the soil can greatly affect the health of the plants growing in it. A substance is classified as alkaline or acidic by measuring its pH.
Alternate Leaf Arrangement: Leaves are considered alternate when the points where two leaves connect to a stem are not located directly across from one another.
Amphibian: (am FIB ee un) A cold-blooded, scaleless animal that begins life with gills, and then moves to land once it grows lungs and develops its adult form. Even after moving to land, most amphibians spend their lives near water to avoid dehydration. Adult amphibians in the desert that have access to water only seasonally often live underground for long periods of time. Examples of amphibians are frogs, toads, salamanders, and caecilians.
Anal fin: (Ay nul) The fin on a fish located behind the anus.
Anus: (Ay nus) Opening on the underside of a fish, near the tail where bodily waste is eliminated, that is expelled the body.
Annual: (AN u ul) Plants that complete their life cycle in one year. These plants grow, flower, produce seed and die in one year.
Appendage: (uh PEN dij) An outer attachment to an animal's body, such as an arm, a leg, a tail, or a fin.
Aquatic: (uh KWA tic) Consisting of or relating to water; living or growing in water. Fish are aquatic animals.
Arachnid: (uh RACK nid) A class of arthropods which have four pairs of legs and a body made up of two segments (the cephalothorax and the abdomen). They have simple eyes, lungs or a breathing tube, live on land, and have no antennae. They also have no teeth or jaws, and so must dissolve their prey externally and then suck up the liquid. Examples of arachnids are spiders, scorpions, mites and ticks.
Areole: (air EE ul) The area on a cactus from which spines, branches and flowers originate.
Arroyo: (uh ROY o) A river bed that runs with water only during prolonged periods of rain; a deep gully cut by a stream that was formed by rain water. Arroyos are found throughout the Southwestern deserts.
Arthropod: (AR thro pod) An invertebrate animal (an animal without a backbone) with a segmented body and legs and a hard outer covering called an exoskeleton. The exoskeleton sheds to allow the animal to grow and metamorphose. Some examples of arthropods are insects, crustaceans, spiders, scorpions, and trilobites. Check out the Orders of Arthropods.
Awn: (ON) A slender bristle at the end of an organ; in grasses the extension of a nerve beyond the leaf-like tissue.
Bacteria: (bac TIR ee uh) One-celled, microscopic organisms that occur in three shapes: spherical, rod-shaped and spiral. The actions of bacteria can either be destructive, such as causing disease, or constructive, such as aiding in digestion.
Barbel: (BAR bl) A type of whisker that grows from the lips or jaws of certain fish, used as a feeler.
Berry: (BAR ee) A thick, juicy fruit surrounded by a thin wall and usually containing many seeds. Examples of berries include tomatoes and grapes. Many fruits that we think of as berries are technically not berries at all. Strawberries, for example, are actually classified as achenes.
Biennial: (bi IN ee ul) Plants that require two years to complete their life cycles. In the first year, most plants produce leaves and stems. In the second year, they flower, produce seed, and then die.
Bottom lands: Flat, low areas through which rivers flow.
Brood: (brood) A group of young animals (like fish or birds) produced at one birth or hatching.
Bud: A growing point on a plant. Different bud types may develop into leaves, flowers, or shoots.
Calyx: (CAL ix) A group of small leaf-like structures known as sepals found at the base of a flower.
Cannibalistic: (can ih ba LIS tik) A word describing an animal that will eat its own kind.
Captivity: (cap TIV it tee) Being confined or imprisoned in an area. Animals in captivity are usually in zoos, in compounds, in laboratories, or kept as pets.
Carapace: (KAR uh pus) The protective covering on all or part of a turtle's or a crustacean's body, commonly called a shell. On a turtle or a tortoise, the carapace is the upper shell. It is made of bone, covered by a protein substance called keratin, which is the same material that is in fingernails. The carapace of a crustacean is the hard outer covering on the front of its body. This is not made of bone, but of a hard, waxy substance called chitin.
Carcass: (KAR kus) The dead body of an animal.
Carnivorous: (kar NIV ur us) Flesh-eating. It refers to animals that eat only animal matter. Some examples are wolves, longnose gars, and great horned owls.
Carrion: (KAR ee un) The decaying flesh of a dead animal.
Catkin: (KAT kin) A dense spike or raceme with many small, usually naked, flowers.
Caudal fin: (KAW dl) The "tail" of a fish which helps guide the body through the water.
Celsius: (SEL see us) A temperature scale that measures freezing at zero degrees and boiling at 100 degrees.
Central spine(s): The larger and darker spine growing in the center of the other spines on a cactus.
Cephalothorax: (sef uh lo THOR ax) The front section of an arachnid or crustacean. It consists of the head and trunk, united into one piece.
Chaparral: (shap uh RAL) A very dense thicket of shrubs and small trees, found in an area that is wetter than desert and drier than forest. The trees are evergreen in some chaparrals and deciduous in others. Chaparrals are often seen in the foothills of mountain ranges.
Clovin: (KLOV n) To be split or partly divided, as in an animals hoof.
Clutches: (KLUCH es) Nests of eggs laid or hatched at one time. Broods of chicks.
Cold-blooded: An animal whose body temperature is determined by the temperature of its environment. This is because a cold-blooded animal exchanges heat with its surroundings. Another word for cold-blooded is ectothermic (ec toe THERM ic).
Composite: (kom POZ it)
flowers: Inflorescences, such as those of daisies and sunflowers, are classified as composite flowers. Each of these is actually made up of two different kinds of flowers, ray flowers, which bloom around the outer edge, and disk flowers, which bloom in the center.
Compound: (KOM pownd)
Leaf: A leaf that is made up of 2 or more leaflets.
Concave: (CON cave) Curved like the inner surface of a bowl; hollowed out.
Convex: (KON veks) A surface that curves outward, like the surface of a ball.
Cone: The fruit most commonly associated with pines and other evergreen trees and shrubs with needle-shaped leaves. Cones are made up of many scales beneath which seeds can be found.
Conifer: (CON I fur) A type of evergreen tree that has cones. An example would be a pine tree with pine cones.
Corymb: (KOR umb) An inflorescence in which the individual flowers are attached at different places on the peduncle, or flower stalk.
Crossbands: Bands of color going around or partly around an animal's body or tail.
Crossbar: A horizontal line or stripe of color on an animal's back.
Crown: The part of a tree where most of the branches and leaves are found.
Crustacean: (kruss TAY shun) A type of arthropod that generally lives in the water, breathes through gills, and has jointed appendages and a hard outer covering, called an exoskeleton. Some examples of crustaceans are shrimp, crayfish, lobsters, crabs, and barnacles.
Culm: (KULM) The jointed stem of a grass, hollow or solid.
Cuttings: A method of producing new plants by removing small root or shoot sections from one plant and rooting them in a new container or garden location.
Cuticle: (CYU ti cul) The non-cellular, protective outer covering of many invertebrates or some plants. Cuticles come in several forms, from hard with many layers (as on a scorpion) to transparent (as on an earthworm). A plant cuticle is a layer of waxy, water-repellant material.
Deciduous: (de SID u us) A term describing plants that lose their leaves at some time during the year.
Dehydrated: (dee HI dray ted) Dried out. Having lost moisture. Animals and plants may get easily dehydrated in the desert because of the heat and the low humidity.
Desiccated: (des ik KAY ted) The state of being completely dried out.
Detritus: (deh TRY tus) Organic matter, dead or alive, and excrement which settles in the bottom of ponds, lakes, etc.
Detrivorous: (deh TRIV or us) Eating fragments of rock, debris or other waste materials in the water.These fragments are produced when underwater rock or debris wears away or dissolves.
Dioecious: (die EE shush) Plants having male and female reproductive organs on different individuals.
Disk flowers: One of the two types of flowers that make up composite flowers. Disk flowers bloom at the center of the inflorescence and are generally the smaller and less showy of the two.
Diurnal: (die UR nl) Primarily active during the day. A diurnal animal usually feeds during some part of the day and sleeps at night. A diurnal plant has flowers which open in the morning and closes at night.
Division: A method of producing new plants from one original by separating or cutting the roots of the "parent" plant to form two or more smaller plants which will grow and develop on their own.
Dorsal fin: (DOOR sul fin) These fins are located along the top of the fish's back. Sometimes this top fin is split into two or three parts. If the fin is located closer to the front, it's called an anterior dorsal fin. If it is located closer to the rear, it is called a posterior dorsal fin.
Eaglets: (EE glet) Young eagles.
Echolocation: (ek o lo KAY shun) A sensory system in some creatures, such as bats, that gives them the ability to find the direction and distance of objects. They do this by sending out high-pitched sounds which are reflected, or echoed, back to the sender.
Ecological niche: (ee kuh LA ji kl NICH) Refers to the role or function of a plant or animal in an ecological community or habitat.
Ecosystems: (E co sis tems) Environmental communities consisting of the animals, plants, insects, bacteria and other organisms which live within the system.
Elbowed: (EL bode) Jointed or bent like an elbow. Ants have elbowed antennae.
Endangered: (en DAYN jerd) Refers to a species in danger of extinction (dying out).
Entire Margin: (MAR jin) A smooth leaf edge.
Endemic: (ENDEMIK) Refers to plant that is unique to a certain area, and not found in other areas.
Ephemeral: (if FEM er el ) Lasting for a very short period of time. Some animals or plants in the desert live in ephemeral lakes, which are shallow lakes or puddles that dry out completely.
Evergreen: (EV er green) A term describing plants that keep their leaves green all year.
Exoskeleton: (ex o SKEL uh tun) A hard, external structure that supports the body of an animal that does not have an internal bone structure. Arthropods, including insects, arachnids, and crustaceans have exoskeletons.
Extinct: (ek stinkt) No longer in existence. Animal or plant species are extinct when every member of the species has died out.
Falconry: (FAL con ree) Falconry is the art of hunting game with a trained bird of prey; also the art of training hawks or falcons to hunt with humans. It was most popular in Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, although it is still practiced today.
Forage: (FOR ij) To search for food or provisions.
Forb: Herbaceous plants other than grasses and grass-like plants.
Fry: (fri) Young or newly hatched fish. Can relate to bees or frogs too.
Fungi: (FUN jee) Organisms, once considered plants, that lack stems, roots, leaves and chlorophyll. Because they cannot photosynthesize, they live as parasites on other living organisms or feed upon dead organic material. Some examples are molds, mildew, mushrooms, and yeast [Fungi is the plural of the word fungus].
Gestation: (jes TAY shun) Pregnancy. The process of carrying babies in the womb so they can develop until birth.
Gill: (GIL) The organ for breathing of animals that live in the water. Located under a flap just behind the eye of the fish.
Glochid: Unique to opuntias: chollas and prickly pears; tiny, barbed spines growing from areoles.
Glumes: (GLOOM) The pair of bracts at the base of a spikelet in grasses.
Granular: (GRAN you ler) Having a grainy texture. Appearing to be made up of little grains or bumpy particles. Some reptile scales are granular.
Gravelly: (GRAV uh lee) Made up of gravel (a loose mixture of pebbles and rock fragments). Having the texture of gravel.
Grazer: (GRAY zur) An animal that eats growing grass.; (GRAY zing) Feeding on herbage, algae or phytoplankton, by consuming the whole food plant or by cropping the entire surface growth (in the case of terrestrial plants).
Grubs: The short, fat, worm-like larvae of some insects.
Hantavirus: (HAN tuh vi rus ) A virus that is transmitted to humans by the inhaling of fine particles from infected rodent droppings. A strain of hantavirus called "Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome" caused an outbreak in the Four Corners region of New Mexico in 1993.
Harem: (HAIR um) A group of female animals that will share and live with one male animal.
Hazardous: (HAZ erd us) Dangerous. Having the potential to harm or kill.
Herb: (erb) or (herb) A plant whose leaves, stems, or roots may be used for their medicinal, culinary, or fragrant properties. Herbs may be trees, shrubs, or small plants.
Herbaceous: (er BAY shus)
perennials: (per IN ee ulz) Plants that died to the ground during the winter but grow anew from the roots in the spring.
Herbivorous: (her BIV er us) Plant-eating. It refers to animals that eat only plant matter. Some examples are the bannertail kangaroo rat, the walkingstick, and the mourning dove.
Hermaphrodites: (her MAF reh dyts)Animals or plants that have both male and female sexual organs.
Hymenoptera: (hi men OP ter uh)The order of insects that includes ants, bees and wasps. These insects often have complex social organizations, two pairs of membranous wings, and a biting or sucking mouth.
Incisor: (in SI zer) A tooth that is located at the front of the mouth and is used for cutting.
Incubate: (IN kyu bate) To provide heat to eggs, usually by sitting on them, until the embryos develop and the eggs hatch.
Inflorescence: (in flor ES ens) A group of individual flowers arranged in a particular pattern.
Insect: (IN sekt) Invertebrate animals of the class Insecta. They have exoskeletons, three pairs of legs, three body segments, antennae, both simple and compound eyes, and often one or two pairs of wings. Insects have been in existence for 200 million years and include moths, butterflies, ants, wasps, beetles, flies, mosquitoes, grasshoppers, cockroaches, and many others.
Insectivorous: (in sek TIV er us ) Insect-eating. Insectivores also eat other land dwelling arthropods, like spiders.
Invertebrates: (in VER teh brits) Animals without backbones (spines). Crustaceans, mollusks, insects, spiders, and other arthropods are all invertebrates; mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish are vertebrates (have backbones).
Larvae: (LAR vee) The immature form of any animal that changes when it becomes an adult. For example, the caterpillar is the larva of the butterfly, and the tadpole is the larva of the frog. [Larvae is the plural of the word larva.]
Layering: A technique in which shoots or stems from a plant are covered with soil while they are still attached to the parent plant. After a period of time, new roots form on the shoot. The shoot can then be cut from the original plant to grow on its own.
Leaf: The main structure of plants that performs photosynthesis. A plant part may be identified as a leaf by locating the bud that grows in the leaf axil. If this bud is not present, the structure is not a leaf.
Leaf Axil: (Ax el) The angle formed where a leaf and a stem connect.
Leaflet: A plant structure that often looks like a; leaf, but that has no bud in the leaf axil. Leaflets are actually subdivisions of leaves.
Limestone: (LIME stone) Sedimentary rock primarily made of calcium carbonate. Most limestone is formed from the remains of shellfish or corals.
Livebearers: (LYV beer urs) As in fish - fish that are born alive and swimming and not by laying eggs.
Lobe: A division or slight indentation of a leaf or flower petal.
Mammals: (MAM uls) Animals of the class Mammalia, the highest class of vertebrates. Mammals are warm-blooded animals and usually have at least some part of their bodies covered with hair. Most have hearts with four chambers. They give birth to live young which they nourish with milk from mammary glands. Primates (including humans), dogs, cats, rodents, hoofed-animals, seals, and whales are some examples of mammals.
Metabolism: (me TAB o lizm) The chemical process that happens inside the body of any living creature. It processes the food eaten and creates the energy that helps the creature to live.
Metamorphosis: (met uh MORE feh sis) The process by which some animals, such as insects or amphibians, develop through several distinct physical stages from birth to adult. One example would be the development from tadpoles to frogs. With insects, there may be a complete metamorphosis of four stages (egg, larva, pupa, adult), or an incomplete metamorphosis of three stages (egg, nymph, adult).
Migrate: (MY grate) To move from one place to another, often due to seasonal changes in climate which affect food supplies. For example, some birds fly from northern, summer breeding areas to winter in warmer, southern regions. They then make the return trip the following spring.
Mollusk: (MA lusk) An invertebrate, usually aquatic, which has a soft, unsegmented body enclosed in a shell. It also has a single strong foot, and an organ called a mantle, that makes the shell substance. Clams, oysters, mussels, and snails are examples of mollusks.
Molt: The periodic shedding of an outer layer, such as skin, feathers, or exoskeleton, which is then replaced with new growth. Many animals molt so they can increase in size.
Monoecious: (man EE shush) Plants having both male and female reproductive organs on the same individual.
Mottled: (MA tld) Spotted, blotched, or streaked.
Mutualism: (MEW choo all izm) A relationship in which both organisms benefit, frequently a relationship in which both organisms cannot live without each other.
Nectivorous: (neck TIV er us) Eats the nectar (or juice) of flowering plants.
Neurotoxin: (NEW ro TOX in) A toxin (poisonous substance) that harms or destroys nerve tissue.
Nocturnal: (nock TUR nl)) Primarily active at night. A nocturnal animal usually feeds at night and sleeps during the day. A nocturnal plant has flowers which open at night.
Node: Points along the stem where leaves are borne; a joint of attachment along a stem or inflorescence axis.
Nut: The dry, often woody, fruit produced by some plants. Some nuts, such as pecans and almonds, are edible.
Nutlet: A very small nut or portion of a nut.
Nymph: (nimf) The stage of incomplete metamorphosis between egg and adult in which the insect resembles the adult but is smaller and wingless.
Omnivorous: (om NIV er us ) Eating both plant and animal matter.
Opposite Leaf Arrangement: Leaves are considered opposite when the points where two leaves connect to a stem are located directly across from one another.
Order: A level of classification of organisms.
Pad: Branches of the prickly pear are referred to as pads.
Panicle: (PAN i cul) An inflorescence with repeated branching. A panicle may consist of racemes, spikes, corymbs, cymes, or umbels.
Parasite: (PEAR a cite) An organism that is dependent upon another living organism (the host) for completion of its life cycle, and which is usually detrimental to the host.
Pectoral fins: (pek TAW rul) There are two of these located on either side of the fish's body. They are attached to the shoulder, just behind the head of the fish. They are kind of like arms!
Pedipalps: (PED ih palps) The second pair of leglike appendages near the mouths of arachnids, used for grasping, sensing, or other functions.
Peduncle: (ped UNK ul) The stalk between flowers in a cluster or beneath a solitary flower. A flower stalk.
Pelvic fins: (PEL vik) There are two of these located on the lower part of the body, usually just below the pectoral fins.
Perennial: (per IN ee ul) A plant that grows indefinately. Some perennials, known as herbaceous perennials, die to the ground during the winter but grow again from the roots in the spring.
pH: This is a measure of the aciditiy or alkalinity (hydrogen ion concentration) of a substance, such as soil or water. pH is measured according to a scale that ranges from 0 to 14, with 0 being the most acidic, 14 being the most alkaline, and 7 being neutral. Most all plants have an optimal pH in which they grow best.
Photopositive: (fo toe POZ uh tiv) An animal that is drawn to light. One example is the moth.
Piscivorous: (pi SIV er us) Fish-eating.
Plague: (playg) A highly contagious, infectious disease that spreads quickly and causes many deaths. One form of bubonic (boo BON ic) plague, called the Black Death, killed about 1/4 of the population of Europe in the 14th century.
Plankton: (PLANK tun) A group of very small organisms, such as algae or one celled beings, that float in the water and are eaten by larger creatures. Sometimes the organisms are so small that they are microscopic.
Plastron: (PLAS trun) The bottom half of a turtle or tortoise's shell.
Pod: The fruit produced by plants in the Legume family (Pea family). Pod are often elongated with individual seeds lined up inside. A green bean is an example of a pod.
Pollen: (PAW luhn) The microspores of flowering plants containing the male reproductive cell.
Polygamous: (puh LIG uh mus) Having more than one mate.
Pome: A fleshy fruit with an inner core containing the seeds. An apple is an example of a pome.
Predator: (PRED uh tur ) An animal that hunts or kills another animal for food.
Prey: (pray) An animal that is hunted or killed by another animal for food.
Raceme: (ray SEEM) A modified spike in which individual flowers are on a pedicel, or small stalk, which is attached to the stem.
Radial spine(s): The spine(s) growing around the central spine, characteristically smaller and paler.
Raptor: (RAP ter) A large, flesh-eating bird, often called a bird of prey. Most raptors have excellent eyesight for hunting, and then seize their prey with powerful talons. Examples of raptors are eagles, hawks, vultures, falcons, and owls.
Ray flowers: One of the two types of flowers that make up composite flowers. Ray flowers bloom around the outer edge of the inflorescence and are generally larger and more visible that disk flowers.
Redd: (RED) The spawning area of trout or salmon.
Reptile: (REP tile) A cold-blooded, (usually) egg-laying, air-breathing, vertebrate of the class Reptilia. Reptiles have bony skeletons and are generally covered with scales or shells. They either have short legs with their bodies close to the ground, or no legs at all. Examples of reptiles are lizards, turtles, and snakes.
Reservoir: (REZ er vwar ) A natural or man-made lake or pond in which water is collected and stored for later use.
Respiratory System: (RES per uh tor ee SIS tum) The set of organs used for breathing. The respiratory system allows an organism to take in oxygen from the environment and release waste products, such as carbon dioxide and water. In higher mammals, the system generally includes lungs, parts of the throat and mouth, the trachea, and veins and arteries, which transport the oxygen and waste products. Very simple forms of life may exchange these gasses more directly with the environment.
Retractile: (re TRAK til) Refers to the ability of an animal, such as a cat, to draw in its sharp claws.
Rhizome: (RY zom) A plant stem that grows underground. It is different from a root because it may have nodes, buds, or scales. The iris is an example of a plant that produces rhizomes.
Riparian: (ri PAR ee en ) Living on the bank of a natural river, lake, pond, or tidewater.
Rooting: (roo ting) To root; this is when an animal digs up the ground with their snout or beak. They usually do this when they are looking for food.
Rosette: (rowz ET) A group of low-growing leaves often encircling the base of the stem or stalk of some plants.
Rodent: (RO dent) A mammal of the order Rodentia, that has constantly growing front incisor teeth adapted for gnawing. Some examples of rodents are rats, mice, squirrels, and porcupines.
Ruff: (ruf) A very noticeable ring of colorful feathers or hair around a bird's or animal's neck.
Rump: The backside (buttocks) of an animal where the legs and back join together.
Rut: (rut) A time when a male animal will find a female animal to breed with.
Samara: (sa MAIR a) A type of fruit structure in which a plant's seed is surrounded by a dry, papery membrane that sometimes resembles wings. When the wind blows, samaras are easily swept away. This way, the seeds of some plants can travel long distances.
Scavenger: (SKA ven gur) An animal that will eat almost anything it can find, such as carrion or trash.
Schools: (sk OO l) This is not a place where fish go to learn! This is more like a large group of fish that travel together.
Semi-arid: (SEM ee AR id) A type of climate which has an average rainfall of 10 to 20 inches per year. The native vegetation in most semi-arid lands consists of short grasses and shrubs.
Sepal: (SEE pal) Small leaf-like structures making up the calyx, or base, of a flower.
Serrated: (ser RAY tid ) Having sawlike notches along an edge.
Shrub: A low-growing woody plant; a bush with one to many trunks.
Simple Leaf: A leaf that is not divided into leaflets.
Solitary: (SOL i tair ee)
flower: A single flower that is attached to the stem or flower shoot.
Sonar: (SO nar) A system of navigating that bounces high-frequency sound waves off objects below the surface of the water to find out their shape and location. Sonar is based on the principles of echolocation that bats use when flying.
Spawn: To deposit eggs in the water; the eggs of aquatic animals.
Species: (SPEES eeze) a group of organisms formally recognized as distinct from other groups; a biological classification in the category below genus, the basic unit of classification in zoology and botany.
Spike: (spyk) An inflorescence in which the individual flowers composing it are attached directly to the flower stalk.
Spine: The sharp stickers on cactus; grow from the areole.
Stamen: (STAY min) The pollen-producing structure of a flower, usually considered the male part of the flower.; (STO lon) A horizontal, above-ground, modified stem producing new plants at its nodes.
Subshrub: A predominately herbaceous plant with woody basal branches.
Succulent: (SUK u lent) Plants with thick, juicy leaves and stems. Many succulents require very little water. A cactus is an example of a succulent, though not all succulents have spines.
Systemic: (sis TEM ic)Affecting the entire body; affecting an entire system within the body, such as the respiratory system.
Talons: (TAL un) The curved claw of a bird of prey, usually used for seizing prey. Sometimes the whole foot of the bird is also called a talon.
Terminal: (TER min ul)
flower (terminal bud): a flower or bud that grows at the end of a shoot.
Terrain: (ter RAIN) The physical features of a piece of land; an area of land.
Territorial: (ter ih TOR ee ul) The description of an animal that claims a particular area of land or water as its range or territory, and defends it against intruders.
Tibia: (TIB ee uh) The fourth segment of an insect's leg.
Tiller: (TIL er) A shoot from a bud at the base of a plant.
Tines: (tynes) A prong or tooth or pointed part of an antler.
Toothed Margin: (MAR jin) A leaf edge that is not smooth.
Torpid: (TOR pid) In a state of torpor.
Torpor: (TOR per) A state similar to hibernation in which an animal's metabolism, breathing, and heart rate slow down and the body temperature drops. Unlike hibernation, the animal usually goes in and out of torpor on a daily basis.
Trailing: Plants that grow along the ground or that need walls, stakes, or trellise for support. Many ivies are trailing plants.
Tubers: (TOO bers) The swollen underground stems of certain plants from which new shoots grow. Potatoes and yams are tubers.
Tubercle: (TOO burr KUL) Rounded protuberance on a cactus which may have a spine cluster at its peak.
Turbid: (TER bid) Muddy or cloudy. Water will become turbid when the sediment has been stirred up by bad weather or certain types of very active fish.
Turbulent: (TUR bu lent) Disturbed or a commotion. Example: Some fish will live or spawn in turbulent water, which means waters that are not calm or quiet, but moving fast, maybe have little whirlpools, etc.
Umbel: (UM bel) An inflorescence in which the individual flowers that make it up grow out from the same point at the top of the flower stalk, or peduncle.
Upright: (UP ryt) Plants that grow straight, toward the sky without the need of a trellis or stake. A tree or a shrub is an upright plant.
Venom: VEN um) Poison or toxin secreted by an animal.
Venomous: (VEN um us) A word used to describe an animal that is able to secrete poison or toxin, and to transmit it by biting, stinging or other means.
Voracious: (vor A shis) Having an enormous appetite for food.
Wash: The dry bed of a stream which flows with water during rains.
Webbed: (web d) Web; A thin, flexible sheet of skin located between the toes of a swimming animal or bird. Example: A duck has webbed feet which act as paddles to help them swim in the water.
Zooplankton: (zo o PLANK tun) Plankton consisting of tiny animals only, such as corals and jellyfish.