Glossary of Technical Terms 



Falcate. Scythe-shaped; long, narrow, and curved. 



Falciform. Curved like a scythe. 



Fauna. The animals inhabiting any region, taken collectively. 



Femoral. Pertaining to the femur, or proximal bone of the hinder leg. 



Filament. Any slender or thread-like structure. 



Filiform. Thread form. 



Fontanel. An unossified space on top of head covered with membrane. 



Foramen. A hole or opening. 



Foramen magnum. The aperture in the posterior part of the skull for the pass- 

 age of the spinal cord. 



Forehead. Frontal curve of head. 



Forficate. Deeply forked; scissors-like. 



Fossae (nasal) . Grooves in which the nostrils open. 



Frontal bone. Anterior bone of top of head, usually paired. 



Fulcra. Rudimentary spine-like projections extending on the anterior rays of 

 the fins of ganoid fishes. 



Furcate. Forked. 



Fusiform. Spindle-shaped; tapering toward both ends, but rather more ab- 

 ruptly forward. 



Ganglion. A nerve centre. 



Ganoid. Scales or plates of bone covered by enamel. 



Gape. Opening of the mouth. 



Gill-arches. The bony arches to which the gills are attached. 



Gill-openings. Openings leading to or from the branchiae. 



Gillrakers. A series of bony appendages, variously formed, along the inner 

 edge of the anterior gill-arch. 



Gills. Organs for breathing the air contained in water. 



Glabrous. Smooth. 



Glossohyal. The tongue bone. 



Graduated (spines'). Progressively longer backward, the third being as much 

 longer than the second as the second is longer than the first. 



Granulate. Rough with small prominences. 



Gular. Pertaining to the gula, or upper foreneck. 



Haemal arch. An arch under a haemal spine for the passage of a blood vessel. 



Haemal canal. The series of haemal arches as a whole. 



Haemal spine. The lowermost spine of a caudal vertebra, in fishes. 



Hcemopophyses, Appendages on the lower side of abdominal vertebrae, in 

 fishes. 



Height. Vertical diameter. 



Heterocercal. Said of the tail of a fish when unequal; the backbone evidently 

 running into the upper lobe. 



Homocercal. Said of the tail of a fish when not evidently unequal; the backbone 

 apparently stopping at the middle of the base of the caudal fin. 



Humerus. Bone of the upper arm. 



Hyoid. Pertaining to the tongue. 



Hyoid apparatus. Formed by a series of bones extending along the inner side 

 of the mandible and supporting the tongue. 



Hyomandibular. A bone by which the posterior end of the suspensorium is 

 articulated with the skull; the supporting element of the suspensorium, 

 the mandible, the hyoid apparatus, and the opercular apparatus. 



Hyper cor acoid. The upper of the 2 bones attached to the clavicle, indirectly 

 bearing the pectoral fin. 



Hypleural. The modified last vertebra supporting the caudal fin. 



Hypobranchials. Bones of the branchial arches below the ceratobranchials. 



Hypocoracoid. The lower of the 2 bones attached to the clavicle behind. 



Hypohyals. Small bones, usually 4, by which the respective sides of the 

 hyoid apparatus are joined. 



Imbricate. Overlapping, like shingles on a roof. 



Imperforate. Not pierced through. 



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