strepsirrhine

[strep-suh-rahyn, ‐rin]

adjective

1. belonging or pertaining to the suborder Strepsirrhini, which includes lemurs, bush babies, pottos, and lorises.

noun

1. a strepsirrhine animal: modern taxonomy classifies the strepsirrhines and the haplorhines as the two suborders of primates.

Word History and Origins

Origin of strepsirrhine¹

First recorded in 1955–60; from New Latin Strepsirrhīnī, plural of Strepsirrhīnus, from Greek strepsi- (stem of strépsis “a turning round,” equivalent to strep-, variant stem of stréphein “to twist, turn”) + -rhīn “-nosed,” adjective derivative of rhī́s “nose, snout”; rhino- ( def. ); catarrhine ( def. ), haplorhine ( def. ), platyrrhine ( def. )

Example Sentences

For the families that include bush babies and lemurs, also known as the strepsirrhine primates, we find a fully functional, anatomically complete vomeronasal organ.

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