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heterostracan

[het-uh-ros-truh-kuh n]
noun Paleontology.
  1. any of several ostracoderms of the order Heterostraci, from the Silurian and Devonian Periods, having the anterior part of the body enclosed in bony plates.
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Origin of heterostracan

< New Latin Heterostrac(i) (plural) name of the order, equivalent to heter- heter- + Greek ostrak(ón) (singular) “shell” + -an
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for heterostracan

Historical Examples

  • Older than the latter is the heterostracan, Pteraspis, and Cyathaspis.

    The Origin of Vertebrates

    Walter Holbrook Gaskell

  • The best known of the Heterostracan families is that of Pteraspidæ.