rectrix
noun
one of the tail feathers of a bird controlling direction during flight.
rectrices
-
pluralof rectrix.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The abortion of the rectrices in the gerbes, while these feathers are fairly developed in the divers, is another point that helps to separate the two Families.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 5 "Dinard" to "Dodsworth" by Various
We should remark, perhaps, that the woodpecker’s tail is always composed of twelve feathers—ten pointed rectrices and two tiny abortive feathers so short and so hidden that no attention is paid to them.
From The Woodpeckers by Fannie Hardy Eckstorm
Nasal depression more than half as long as maxilla; rectrices twelve.
From British Birds in their Haunts by Rev. C. A. Johns
The remiges and rectrices indicate perfect feathers, with shaft and complete vanes which were so neatly finished that they must have possessed typical radii and hooklets.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 4 "Aram, Eugene" to "Arcueil" by Various
For birds undergoing postnuptial or postjuvenal molt, the degree of advancement of the molt is indicated by the numbers of primaries and rectrices that are new or partly ensheathed.
From Summer Birds From the Yucatan Peninsula by Erwin E. Klaas
