snail darter
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of snail darter
First recorded in 1970–75
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.
It involved the snail darter, a tiny, then-endangered fish whose habitat would have been harmed by the proposed Tellico Dam in Tennessee.
From Salon ● Apr. 7, 2026
Although the snail darter is the fifth fish species to recover and be removed from the list, some 400 other fish species across the United States remain listed as imperiled.
From Science Magazine ● Oct. 12, 2022
Mr. Plater, meanwhile, contrasted the legal challenges to the Endangered Species Act with success stories like that of the snail darter.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 5, 2022
The protection of the snail darter was the first big test of the Endangered Species Act because protecting it meant blocking construction of a Tennessee Valley Authority dam.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 4, 2022
Last month, federal wildlife officials announced that the snail darter, a tiny fish first found in the Tennessee River system, had recovered after being transplanted and found in the wild elsewhere.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 29, 2021
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
