proventriculus

[proh-ven-trik-yuh-luhs]

noun

plural

proventriculi 

1. the glandular portion of the stomach of birds, in which food is partially digested before passing to the ventriculus or gizzard.

2. a similar enlargement in the alimentary tract of several invertebrates, variously modified for maceration and digestion.

proventriculus

/ ˌprəʊvɛnˈtrɪkjʊləs /

noun

1. the first part of the stomach of birds, the gizzard

2. the thick muscular stomach of crustaceans and insects; gizzard

Other Word Forms

• proventricular adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of proventriculus¹

First recorded in 1825–35; pro- ¹ + ventriculus

Word History and Origins

Origin of proventriculus¹

C19: from New Latin, from Latin _pro- ¹ + ventriculus little belly, from venter belly

Example Sentences

These findings included the first description of overproduction of scar tissue in the birds’ proventriculus – the part of their stomach where chemical digestion occurs. 

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The researchers found a positive relationship between the amount of plastic in the proventriculus and the degree of scarring.

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They dissected a glandular organ in the birds called a proventriculus, which functions essentially like the first part of the stomach of other animals.

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"We identified significant evidence for widespread plastic-related scar tissue formation in the proventriculus of wild seabirds," the authors wrote in what is likely the first study to thoroughly document plastic-induced fibrosis in wild organisms.

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Before anything enters a bird's gizzard, an organ for grinding up food, the proventriculus secretes digestive enzymes and hydrochloric acid to break down meals.

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