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GLOSSARY. 



(Esophageal. Pertaining to the gullet. 



(Esophagus. The anterior extremity of 

 the alimentary canal ; the gullet. 



Officinal. Pertaining to drugs, perfumes, 

 &c., usually kept in apothecaries' shops. 



Oleaginous. Unctuous ; having the qual- 

 ities of oil. 



Olfactory. Relating to the sense of smell- 

 ing ; as olfactory nerves. 



Olivaceous. Dull olive-green, or green 

 tinged with brown. 



Olive. A brownish green, the color of 

 olives. 



Omnigenous. Consisting of all kinds. 



Omnivorous. Feeding indiscriminately 

 or subsisting on all kinds of food. 



Onychotenthis. The genus of Calamaries 

 armed with hooks or claws. 



Oolite. Egg-stone ; an extensive group 

 of secondary limestones composed of 

 rounded particles, like the roe or eggs 

 of a fish. 



Opalescent. Reflecting a colored lustre 

 from a single spot. 



Opaline. A bluish white reflecting the 

 splendor of the opal. 



Opaque. Impervious to the rays of light ; 

 not transparent ; a surface which does 

 not reflect the rays of light at all. 



Operculate. When the eyes of insects 

 are covered by an operculum. 



Operculated. Furnished with a lid or 

 cover. 



Operculum. A lid or cover; applied to 

 the horny plate which closes certain 

 univalve shells ; also to the covering 

 of the gills in fish. 



Ophidian. Resembling or pertaining to 

 serpents ; designating an order of ver- 

 tebrate animals destitute of feet and 

 fins. 



Ophiologist. A person versed in ophiology, 

 or the natural history of serpents. 



Ophiology. That part of Natural History 

 which treats of serpents. 



Ophiomorphous. Having the form of a 

 serpent. 



Ophiophagous. Eating or feeding on ser- 

 pents. 



Orange. A color composed of equal 

 parts of red and yellow. 



Orbicular. Spherical ; in the form of an 

 orb. 



OiUculate. A depressed globe, whose 



horizontal section is circular, and verti- 

 cal oval. 



Orbit. The skin which surrounds the 

 eye. It is generally bare, but particu- 

 larly in the parrot and the heron. 



Orbital. Pertaining to the orbit of the eye. 



Order. A subordinate division of the an- 

 imal kingdom, bearing the same rela- 

 tion to a class which this latter does to 

 a kingdom ; so that a class is made up 

 of orders, in the same manner as a 

 kingdom is made up of classes. 



Ordinate. When spots, puncta. &c. are 

 placed in rows : thus we say ordinato- 

 punctate, ordinato-maculate. &c. 



Organ. A natural instrument of action 

 or operation, or by which some process 

 is carried on. 



Organic Bodies. Such as possess organs, 

 on the action of which depend their 

 growth and perfection ; as in the case 

 of animals and plants. 



Organic Remains. All animal and vege- 

 table substances which are dug out of 

 the earth in a fossilized state. 



Organization. Structure j suitable dis- 

 position of parts which are to act to- 

 gether in a compound body. 



Organology. That branch of physiology 

 which specially treats of the different 

 organs of animals, but more particu- 

 larly those of the human species. 



Orichalceous. A splendor intermediate 

 between that of gold and brass. 



Orifice. An opening ; the mouth or 

 aperture of a tube orwther cavity. 



Ornitholite. A petrified bird. 



Ornithologist. A person who is skilled in 

 the natural history of birds, who un- 

 derstands their form, structure, habits, 

 * and uses. 



Ornithology. The science which teaches 

 the natural history and arrangement 

 of birds ; or, to use the definition of 

 Cuvier, of vertebrated oviparous ani- 

 mals, with a double circulation and 

 respiration, organized for flight. 



Orthocera. Extinct Cephalopods which 

 inhabited long, conical, chambered 

 shells, like a straight horn. 



Orthoceratite. The name of certain fossil 

 univalve shells, straight, or but slightly 

 curved, arranged by Cuvier in the ge- 

 nus Nautilus. 



