altricial

[al-trish-uh l]

adjective Zoology. (of an animal species)

helpless at birth or hatching and requiring parental care for a period of time (opposed to precocial.)

Origin of altricial

1870–75; < Latin altrīc-, stem of altrīx wet nurse, nourisher (al(ere) to nourish (cf. aliment) + -trīx -trix) + -al¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for altricial

altricial

adjective

(of the young of some species of birds after hatching) naked, blind, and dependent on the parents for food

noun

an altricial bird, such as a pigeon

Compare precocial

Word Origin for altricial

C19: from New Latin altriciālis, from Latin altrix a nurse, from alere to nourish

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Science definitions for altricial

altricial

[ăl-trĭsh′əl]

Born or hatched in a helpless condition requiring prolonged parental care, as by being naked, blind, or unable to move about. Nesting birds, monotremes, marsupials, and carnivores have altricial young. Compare precocial.