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invertebrate

(Encyclopedia)invertebrate ĭnˌvûrˈtəbrət, –brātˌ [key], any animal lacking a backbone. The invertebrates include the tunicates and lancelets of phylum Chordata, as well as all animal phyla other than Chor...

Archaeopteryx

(Encyclopedia)Archaeopteryx ärˌkēŏpˈtərĭks [key] [Gr.,=primitive wing], a 150 million-year-old fossil animal first discovered in 1860 in the late Jurassic limestone of Solnhofen, Bavaria, and described the f...

venom

(Encyclopedia)venom or zootoxin, any of a variety of poisonous substances produced by animals. In poisonous snakes, venom is secreted in two poison glands, one on each side of the upper jaw, and enters the fang by ...

Knight, Charles

(Encyclopedia)Knight, Charles, 1874–1953, American artist, b. New York City. Knight painted and sculpted animal subjects. He is best known for his murals at the American Museum of Natural History, New York City. ...

tunicate

(Encyclopedia)tunicate to͞oˈnəkĭt [key], marine animal of the phylum Chordata, which also includes the vertebrates. The adult form of most tunicates (also called urochordates) shows no resemblance to vertebrate...

La Brea

(Encyclopedia)La Brea lə brāˈə [key], area, S Calif., formerly in Rancho La Brea. The La Brea asphalt pits, which yielded prehistoric animal and plant remains, are in Hancock Park, Los Angeles. The first fossil...

lasso

(Encyclopedia)lasso lăsˈō, lăso͞oˈ [key], light, strong rope, usually with a smooth, hard finish, made of a fine quality of hemp or nylon. It is used primarily for catching large animals such as cattle and ho...

sand dollar

(Encyclopedia)sand dollar, common name for a marine animal in the same phylum as the starfish (see sea star). The sand dollar has a rigid, flattened, disk-shaped test, or shell, made of firmly united plates lying j...

Agriculture, United States Department of

(Encyclopedia)Agriculture, United States Department of, federal executive department established in 1862, whose head was made a cabinet member in 1889. The department administers federal programs related to food pr...

wolverine

(Encyclopedia)wolverine or glutton, largest member of the weasel family, Gulo gulo, found in the northern parts of North America and Eurasia, usually in high mountains near the timberline or in tundra. It is a heav...
 

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