heterostracan

[het-uh-ros-truh-kuh n]

noun Paleontology.

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.

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. 2019

Examples from the Web for heterostracan

Historical Examples of heterostracan

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.
A Guide to the Study of Fishes, Volume 1 (of 2)
David Starr Jordan