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coelacanth
[ see-luh-kanth ]
noun
- a crossopterygian fish, Latimeria chalumnae, thought to have been extinct since the Cretaceous Period but found in 1938 off the coast of southern Africa.
coelacanth
/ ˈsiːləˌkænθ /
noun
- a primitive marine bony fish of the genus Latimeria (subclass Crossopterygii ), having fleshy limblike pectoral fins and occurring off the coast of E Africa: thought to be extinct until a living specimen was discovered in 1938
coelacanth
/ sē′lə-kănth′ /
- Any of various fishes of the group Coelacanthiformes or Actinistia, having lobed, fleshy fins. Coelacanths are crossopterygians, the ancient group of lobe-finned fishes that gave rise to land vertebrates. They were known only from Paleozoic and Mesozoic fossils until a living species ( Latimeria chalumnae ) was found in the Indian Ocean in 1938. A second Latimeria species was described in 1999.
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Other Words From
- coe·la·can·thine [see-l, uh, -, kan, -thahyn, -thin], adjective
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Word History and Origins
Origin of coelacanth1
1605–15; < New Latin Coelacanthus originally a genus name, equivalent to coel- coel- + Greek -akanthos -spined, -thorned, adj. derivative of ákantha spine, thorn
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Word History and Origins
Origin of coelacanth1
C19: from New Latin coelacanthus, literally: hollow spine, from coel- + Greek akanthos spine
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Example Sentences
The coelacanth fishes from the Rock Lake shale are part of the varied fauna collected from Garnett.
From Project Gutenberg
A synopsis of the coelacanth fishes of the Yorkshire Coal Measures.
From Project Gutenberg
All are of the coelacanth type, having Y-shaped neural and haemal arches, without centra.
From Project Gutenberg
The knoblike antotic processes on the basisphenoid are unlike those of any other known coelacanth.
From Project Gutenberg
Coelacanth fishes from the continental Triassic of the western United States.
From Project Gutenberg
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