extirpation

American  

[ek-ster-pey-shuhn] / ˌɛk stərˈpeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. Biology, Ecology. (of a species) the state or condition of having become locally or regionally extinct.

   Forest elephants in Central Africa have experienced a 65 percent reduction in their populations, and extirpation is imminent if the poaching rate persists.

2. Medicine/Medical. the removal or excision of a tumor, organ, etc..

   Minor controllable bleeding was the only noted complication associated with lymph node extirpation in two of the thirty-nine performed procedures.

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Etymology

Origin of extirpation

First recorded in 1540–50, for an earlier sense; extirpat(e) ( def. ) + -ion ( def. )

Example Sentences

Fortunately, the pumas’ extirpation from the region doesn’t mean they’ll be extinct everywhere in the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 9, 2024

The magnificent ramshorn is endemic to the lower Cape Fear River Basin, and lived in three captive populations in North Carolina since 2004 following its extirpation from the wild, according to the wildlife commission.

From Washington Times • Nov. 21, 2023

Where species collapse does not occur, “climate change may result in large-scale mortality and population extirpation due to maladaptation of populations.”

From Scientific American • May 5, 2023

Gray seals previously on the brink of extirpation in waters of New England now occupy some Massachusetts beaches by the hundreds.

From Washington Post • Aug. 12, 2022

Regeneration of bone was incomplete in some instances where total extirpation of a portion of the shell had occurred.

From Natural History of the Ornate Box Turtle, Terrapene ornata ornata Agassiz by Legler, John M.