eyespot

American  

[ahy-spot] / ˈaɪˌspɒt /

noun

1. a sensory organ of lower animals, having a light-perceiving function.

2. an eyelike spot, as on the tail of a peacock; eye.

3. Plant Pathology. a disease of plants, characterized by elliptical lesions on the leaves and stems, stunting of growth, and rotting, caused by any of several fungi.

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eyespot British  

/ ˈaɪˌspɒt /

noun

1. a small area of light-sensitive pigment in some protozoans, algae, and other simple organisms

2. an eyelike marking, as on the wings of certain butterflies

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eyespot Scientific  

/ ī′spŏt′ /

1. An area that is sensitive to light and functions somewhat like an eye, found in certain single-celled organisms as well as many invertebrate animals.

2. A round marking resembling an eye, as on the tail feather of a peacock.

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Etymology

Origin of eyespot

First recorded in 1580–90; eye + spot

Example Sentences

The 30-centimeter-long adult grows out of a larva that is little more than a sesame seed–size blob with an eyespot at one end and a band of cilia around its body.

From Science Magazine • Jan. 16, 2023

Comparison of the number of birds fleeing from butterflies with and without eyespots indicates that the eyespot trait has been disfavored because this trait makes the butterflies stand out to predators.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Comparison of the total number of encounters shows that more birds responded to the eyespot, a trait that will likely be selected against in natural populations of the butterfly.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Some of the earliest renditions might have been a simple pit eye, a kind of pit of tissue lined with light receptors, or what scientists call an eyespot, a simple region that detects light.

From Scientific American • May 19, 2021

The `piece de resistance' of the back wing, is the eyespot.

From Moths of the Limberlost by Stratton-Porter, Gene