This is a list of common

affix In linguistics, an affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word or word form. Affixes may be derivational, like English ''-ness'' and ''pre-'', or inflectional, like English plural ''-s'' and past tense ''-ed''. They ar ...

es used when scientifically naming species, particularly extinct species for whom only their scientific names are used, along with their derivations. *a-, an-: ''Pronunciation'': /ə/, /a/, /ən/, /an/. ''Origin'': grc, ἀ-, ἀν- (''a, an-''). ''Meaning'': a prefix used to make words with a sense opposite to that of the root word; in this case, meaning "without" or "-less". This is usually used to describe organisms without a certain characteristic, as well as organisms in which that characteristic may not be immediately obvious. *:Examples: ''

Anurognathus ''Anurognathus'' is a genus of small pterosaur that lived during the Late Jurassic period (Tithonian stage). ''Anurognathus'' was first named and described by Ludwig Döderlein in 1923.Döderlein, L. (1923). "''Anurognathus Ammoni'', ein neuer F ...

'' ("tail-less jaw"); ''

Apus Apus is a small constellation in the Southern Celestial Hemisphere, southern sky. It represents a bird-of-paradise, and its name means "without feet" in Greek language, Greek because the bird-of-paradise was once wrongly believed to lack feet. ...

'' ("without foot"); '' Apteryx'' ("wingless"); ''

Pteranodon ''Pteranodon'' (); from Ancient Greek (''pteron'', "wing") and (''anodon'', "toothless") is a genus of pterosaur that included some of the largest known flying reptiles, with ''P. longiceps'' having a wingspan of . They lived during the late Cr ...

'' ("toothless wing") *-acanth, acantho-, -cantho: ''Pronunciation'': /eɪkænθ/, /eɪkænθoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, ἄκανθα (''ákantha''). ''Meaning'': spine. *:Examples: ''

Acanthodes ''Acanthodes'' (from el, ἄκανθώδης , 'provided with spines') is an extinct genus of spiny shark. Fossils have been found in Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia. ''Acanthodes'' was most common in the Carboniferous and Early Perm ...

'' ("spiny base"); ''

Acanthostega ''Acanthostega'' (meaning "spiny roof") is an extinct genus of stem-tetrapod, among the first vertebrate animals to have recognizable limbs. It appeared in the late Devonian period (Famennian age) about 365 million years ago, and was anatomic ...

'' ("spine roof");

coelacanth The coelacanths ( ) are fish belonging to the order Actinistia that includes two extant species in the genus ''Latimeria'': the West Indian Ocean coelacanth (''Latimeria chalumnae''), primarily found near the Comoro Islands off the east coast ...

("hollow spine"); ''

Acrocanthosaurus ''Acrocanthosaurus'' ( ; ) is a genus of carcharodontosaurid dinosaur that existed in what is now North America during the Aptian and early Albian stages of the Early Cretaceous, from 113 to 110 million years ago. Like most dinosaur genera, ' ...

'' ("high-spined lizard"); ''

Acanthoderes ''Acanthoderes'' is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns, are a large family of beetles, with over 35,000 species described. Most species are characterized b ...

'' ("spiny neck"); ''

Acanthamoeba ''Acanthamoeba'' is a genus of amoeboid, amoebae that are commonly recovered from soil, fresh water, and other habitat (ecology), habitats. ''Acanthamoeba'' has two evolutive forms, the metabolically active trophozoite and a dormant, stress-resi ...

'' ("spiny amoeba") * aeto-: ''Pronunciation'': /aɛto/. Origin: grc, ἀετός (''aetós''). ''Meaning'': eagle. *:Examples: ''

Aetonyx ''Massospondylus'' ( ; from Greek, (massōn, "longer") and (spondylos, "vertebra")) is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Early Jurassic. (Hettangian to Pliensbachian ages, ca. 200–183 million years ago). It was described by Si ...

'' ("eagle claw"); ''

Aetobatus ''Aetobatus'' is a genus of eagle rays native to the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. It was formerly placed in Myliobatidae, but is now placed in its own family Aetobatidae based on salient differences from myliobatids, especially the pecto ...

'' ("eagle ray"); ''

Aetosaur Aetosaurs () are heavily armored reptiles belonging to the extinct order Aetosauria (; from Greek, (aetos, "eagle") and (, "lizard")). They were medium- to large-sized omnivorous or herbivorous pseudosuchians, part of the branch of archosaurs ...

'' ("eagle lizard") *amphi-: ''Pronunciation'': /amfiː/, /amfɪ/. ''Origin'': grc, ἀμφί (''amphí''). ''Meaning'': both. *:Examples:

Amphibia Amphibians are four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arbore ...

("two types of life"); ''

Amphicoelias ''Amphicoelias'' (, meaning "biconcave", from the Greek ἀμφί, ''amphi'': "on both sides", and κοῖλος, ''koilos'': "hollow, concave") is a genus of herbivorous sauropod dinosaur that lived approximately 150 million years ago during t ...

'' ("hollow at both ends"); ''

Amphicyon ''Amphicyon'' ("ambiguous dog") is an extinct genus of large carnivorous bone-crushing mammals, popularly known as bear dogs, of the family Amphicyonidae, subfamily Amphicyoninae, from the Burdigalian Epoch until the late Pliocene, with the creat ...

'' ("ambiguous dog") *-anthus, antho-: ''Pronunciation'': /anθəs/, /anθoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, ἄνθος (''ánthos''). ''Meaning'': flower. *:Examples: ''

Helianthus ''Helianthus'' () is a genus comprising about 70 species of annual and perennial flowering plants in the daisy family Asteraceae commonly known as sunflowers. Except for three South American species, the species of ''Helianthus'' are native to ...

'' ("sunflower");

Anthophila Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfami ...

("flower-loving"); ''

Dianthus ''Dianthus'' () is a genus of about 340 species of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, native mainly to Europe and Asia, with a few species in north Africa and in southern Africa, and one species (''D. repens'') in arctic North Ameri ...

'' ("Zeus flower"/"godly flower") *arch-, archi-, archo-, -archus: ''Pronunciation'': /ark/, /arkoʊ/, /arkɪ/, /arkəs/. ''Origin'': grc, ἀρχός (''arkhós''), ''meaning'': ruler; ἀρχικός (''arkhikós''), ''meaning'': ruling. Used for exceptionally large or widespread animals. *:Examples: ''

Archelon ''Archelon'' is an extinct marine turtle from the Late Cretaceous, and is the largest turtle ever to have been documented, with the biggest specimen measuring from head to tail and in body mass. It is known only from the Dakota Pierre Shal ...

'' ("ruling turtle"); '' Architeuthis'' ("ruling squid"); ''

Thalattoarchon ''Thalattoarchon'' is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic of the western United States. The type species ''Thalattoarchon saurophagis'' (meaning "lizard-eating sovereign of the sea" in Greek) was discovered in Nevada, USA, in ...

'' ("Sea Ruler"); ''

Archosaur Archosauria () is a clade of diapsids, with birds and crocodilians as the only living representatives. Archosaurs are broadly classified as reptiles, in the cladistic sense of the term which includes birds. Extinct archosaurs include non-avian d ...

'' ("ruling lizard"); ''

Andrewsarchus ''Andrewsarchus'' () is an extinct genus of mammal that lived during the middle Eocene epoch in what is now Inner Mongolia, China. Only one species is usually recognized, ''A. mongoliensis'', known from a single skull of great size discovered in ...

'' (" Andrews's ruler") *archaeo-: ''Pronunciation'': /arkiːɒ/, /arkiːoʊ/ . ''Origin'': grc, ἀρχαῖος (''arkhaîos''). ''Meaning'': ancient. Used for early versions of animals and plants. *:Examples: ''

Archaeopteryx ''Archaeopteryx'' (; ), sometimes referred to by its German name, "" ( ''Primeval Bird''), is a genus of bird-like dinosaurs. The name derives from the ancient Greek (''archaīos''), meaning "ancient", and (''ptéryx''), meaning "feather" ...

'' ("ancient wing"); ''

Archaeoindris ''Archaeoindris fontoynontii'' is an extinct giant lemur and the largest primate known to have evolved on Madagascar, comparable in size to a male gorilla. It belonged to a family of extinct lemurs known as "sloth lemurs" (Palaeopropithecidae) ...

'' ("ancient

Indri The indri (; ''Indri indri''), also called the babakoto, is one of the largest living lemurs, with a head-body length of about and a weight of between . It has a black and white coat and maintains an upright posture when climbing or clinging. ...

"); ''

Archaeopteris ''Archaeopteris'' is an extinct genus of progymnosperm tree with fern-like leaves. A useful index fossil, this tree is found in strata dating from the Upper Devonian to Lower Carboniferous (), the oldest fossils being 385 million years old, ...

'' ("ancient fern"); '' Archaeanthus'' ("ancient flower") *-arctos, arcto-: ''Pronunciation'': /arktoʊz/, /arktoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, ἄρκτος (''árktos''). ''Meaning'': bear. *:Examples: ''

Phascolarctos ''Phascolarctos'' is a genus of marsupials with one living species, the koala ''Phascolarctos cinereus'', an iconic animal of Australia. Several extinct species of the genus are known from fossil material, these were also large tree dwellers that ...

'' ("bag bear"); ''

Arctodus ''Arctodus'' is an extinct genus of short-faced bear that inhabited North America during the Pleistocene (~2.5 Mya until 12,000 years ago). There are two recognized species: the lesser short-faced bear (''Arctodus pristinus'') and the giant short- ...

'' ("bear tooth"); ''

Arctocyon ''Arctocyon'' ('bear dog') is an extinct genus of ungulate mammals. ''Arctocyon'' was a "ground dwelling omnivore", that lived from 61.3-56.8 Ma. Synonyms of ''Arctocyon'' include ''Claenodon'', and ''Neoclaenodon''. ''Arctocyon'' was likely plant ...

'' ("bear dog") *arthro-: /arθroʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, ἄρθρον (''árthron''). ''Meaning'': joint. Often used for animals with

exoskeletons An exoskeleton (from Greek ''éxō'' "outer" and ''skeletós'' "skeleton") is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an internal skeleton (endoskeleton) in for example, a human. In usage, some of the ...

. *:Examples: ''

Arthrospira ''Arthrospira'' is a genus of free-floating filamentous cyanobacteria characterized by cylindrical, multicellular trichomes in an open left-hand helix. A dietary supplement is made from ''A. platensis'' and ''A. maxima'', known as spirulina. ...

'' ("jointed coil"); ''

Arthropleura ''Arthropleura'' () is a genus of extinct millipede arthropods that lived in what is now North America and Europe around 345 to 290 million years ago, from the Viséan stage of the lower Carboniferous Period to the Sakmarian stage of the lower P ...

'' ("jointed rib");

arthropod Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...

("jointed foot") *aspido-, -aspis: ''Pronunciation'': /əspɪdoʊ/, /əspɪs/. ''Origin'': grc, ἀσπίς (''aspís''). ''Meaning'': shield. The suffix "-aspis" is used to describe armored fish. *:Examples: ''

Aspidochelone According to the tradition of the ''Physiologus'' and medieval bestiaries, the aspidochelone is a fabled sea creature, variously described as a large whale or vast sea turtle, and a giant sea monster with huge spines on the ridge of its back. No ...

'' ("shield turtle"); ''

Cephalaspis ''Cephalaspis'' (from el, κεφαλή , 'head' and el, ἀσπίς , 'shield') is a possibly monotypic genus of extinct osteostracan agnathan vertebrate. It was a trout-sized detritivorous fish that lived in the early Devonian. Description L ...

'' ("head shield"); ''

Sacabambaspis ''Sacabambaspis'' is an extinct genus of jawless fish that lived in the Ordovician period. ''Sacabambaspis'' lived in shallow waters on the continental margins of Gondwana. It is the best known arandaspid with many specimens. It is related to ...

'' ("

Sacabamba Sacabamba ( qu, Saqapampa) is a town in the Cochabamba Department in central Bolivia. It is the capital of Sacabamba Municipality, the fourth municipal section of Esteban Arce Province Esteban Arce is a province in Cochabamba Department, Bol ...

shield"); ''

Brindabellaspis ''Brindabellaspis stensioi'' ("Erik Stensiö's Brindabella Ranges Shield") is a placoderm with a flat, platypus-like snout from the Early Devonian of the Taemas-Wee Jasper reef in Australia. When it was first discovered in 1980, it was originally ...

'' (" Brindabella shield") *-avis: ''Pronunciation'': /əvɪs/. ''Origin'': la, avis. ''Meaning'': bird. *:Examples: ''

Protoavis ''Protoavis'' (meaning "first bird") is a problematic taxon known from fragmentary remains from Late Triassic Norian stage deposits near Post, Texas. Much controversy remains over the animal, and there are many different interpretations of what ...

'' ("first bird"); ''

Argentavis ''Argentavis magnificens'' was among the largest flying birds ever to exist. While it is still considered the heaviest flying bird of all time, ''Argentavis'' was likely surpassed in wingspan by ''Pelagornis sandersi'' which is estimated to have ...

'' ("Argentine bird"); ''

Eoalulavis ''Eoalulavis'' (from the Ancient Greek: ''Éōs'', "dawn"; ''alula'', "bastard wing"; ''avis'', "bird") is a monotypic genus of enantiornithean bird that lived during the Barremian, in the Lower Cretaceous around 125 million years ago. The only ...

'' ("little-winged dawn bird") *-bates: ''Pronunciation'': /bætiz/. ''Origin'': grc, βαίνω ("baínō"). ''Meaning'': wanderer, one that treads. *:Examples: ''

Hylobates The genus ''Hylobates'' is one of the four genera of gibbons. Its name means "forest walker", from the Greek (, "forest") and (, "one who treads"). It was once considered the only genus, but recently its subgenera (''Hoolock'' ormerly ''Bun ...

'' ("forest wanderer"); ''

Dendrobates ''Dendrobates'' is a genus of poison dart frogs native to Central and South America. It once contained numerous species, but most originally placed in this genus have been split off into other genera such as ''Adelphobates'', '' Ameerega'', '' A ...

'' ("tree wanderer") *brachi-, brachy-: ''pronunciation'': /brækɪ/. ''Origin'': grc, βραχύς, βραχίων (''brakhús, brakhíōn''). ''Meaning'': short, and the short part of the arm, or upper arm, respectively. Used in its original meaning, and also to mean "arm". *:Examples: ''

Brachylophosaurus ''Brachylophosaurus'' ( or ; meaning "short-crested lizard", Greek ''brachys'' = short + ''lophos'' = crest + ''sauros'' = lizard, referring to its small crest) was a mid-sized member of the hadrosaurid family of dinosaurs. It is known from sev ...

'' ("short-crested lizard"); ''

Brachiosaurus ''Brachiosaurus'' () is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived in North America during the Late Jurassic, about 154to 150million years ago. It was first described by American paleontologist Elmer S. Riggs in 1903 from fossils found in th ...

'' ("arm lizard"); ''

Brachyceratops ''Brachyceratops'' ('short horned face') is a dubious genus of ceratopsian dinosaur known only from partial juvenile specimens dating to the late Cretaceous Period of Montana, United States. ''Brachyceratops'' has historically been known from ju ...

'' ("short-horned face") *bronto-: ''Pronunciation'': /brɒntoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, βροντή (''brontḗ''). ''Meaning'': thunder. Used for large animals. *:Examples: ''

Brontosaurus ''Brontosaurus'' (; meaning "thunder lizard" from Greek , "thunder" and , "lizard") is a genus of gigantic quadruped sauropod dinosaurs. Although the type species, ''B. excelsus'', had long been considered a species of the closely related ''A ...

'' ("thunder lizard"), ''

Brontotherium ''Megacerops'' ("large-horned face", from '' méga-'' "large" + '' kéras'' "horn" + '' ōps'' "face") is an extinct genus of the prehistoric odd-toed ungulate (hoofed mammal) family Brontotheriidae, an extinct group of rhinoceros-like browsers ...

'' ("thunder beast"), ''

Brontoscorpio ''Brontoscorpio'' is an extinct genus of scorpion. Remains of the only known species, ''Brontoscorpio anglicus'', were discovered in the St. Maughan's Formation, Lochkovian-aged sandstone from Trimpley, Worcestershire. The species was described o ...

'' ("thunder scorpion") '' Brontochelys'' ("thunder turtle") *-canth, cantho-: see -acanth, acantho-. *carcharo-: ''Pronunciation'': /kərkæro/. ''Origin'': (''kárkharos''). ''Meaning'': sharp, jagged; extended via (''karkharías'') to mean "shark". *:Examples: ''

Carcharodon ''Carcharodon'' () is a genus of sharks within the family Lamnidae. The only extant member is the great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''). Hubell's white shark (''Carcharodon hubbelli'') is an extinct member of this genus. Megalodon ...

'' ("jagged tooth"), ''

Carcharocles ''Otodus'' is an extinct genus of mackerel shark which lived from the Paleocene to the Pliocene epoch. The name ''Otodus'' comes from Ancient Greek (, meaning "ear") and (, meaning "tooth") – thus, "ear-shaped tooth". Anatomy This shark is k ...

'' ("glorious shark"), ''

Carcharodontosaurus ''Carcharodontosaurus'' (; ) is a genus of large carcharodontosaurid theropod dinosaur that existed during the Cenomanian age of the Late Cretaceous in Northern Africa. The genus ''Carcharodontosaurus'' is named after the shark genus ''Carcha ...

'' ("serrated tooth lizard") *-cephalus, cephalo-, -cephale, -cephalian: ''Pronunciation'': /sɛfələs/, /sɛfəloʊ̯/, /sɛfəli:/ /sɛfeɪliːən/. ''Origin'': grc, κεφαλή (''kephalḗ''). ''Meaning'': head. *:Examples: ''

Sclerocephalus ''Sclerocephalus'' is an extinct genus of temnospondyl amphibian from the lowermost Permian of Germany and Czech Republic with four valid species, including the type species ''S. haeuseri''. It is one of the most completely preserved and most abu ...

'' ("hard head"); ''

Euoplocephalus ''Euoplocephalus'' ( ) is a genus of very large, herbivorous ankylosaurid dinosaurs, living during the Late Cretaceous of Canada. It has only one named species, ''Euoplocephalus tutus''. The first fossil of ''Euoplocephalus'' was found in 1897 i ...

'' ("well-protected head"), ''

Pachycephalosaurus ''Pachycephalosaurus'' (; meaning "thick-headed lizard", from Greek ''pachys-/'' "thick", ''kephale/'' "head" and ''sauros/'' "lizard") is a genus of pachycephalosaurid dinosaurs. The type species, ''P. wyomingensis'', is the only known species, ...

'' ("thick headed lizard"), ''

Amtocephale ''Amtocephale'' (meaning " Amtgai head") is a genus of pachycephalosaurid dinosaur from early Late Cretaceous (Turonian-Santonian stages) deposits of southern Gobi Desert, Mongolia. ''Amtocephale'' is known from the holotype MPC-D 100/120 ...

'' (" Amtgai head"); ''

Therocephalian Therocephalia is an extinct suborder of eutheriodont therapsids (mammals and their close relatives) from the Permian and Triassic. The therocephalians ("beast-heads") are named after their large skulls, which, along with the structure of their te ...

'' ("beast-headed") *-ceras, cerat-, -ceratus: ''Pronunciation'': /sɛrəs/, /sɛrət/, /sɛrətəs/. ''Origin'': grc, κέρας (''kéras''). ''Meaning'': horn. Used for many horned animals, but most notably

ceratopsians Ceratopsia or Ceratopia ( or ; Greek: "horned faces") is a group of herbivorous, beaked dinosaurs that thrived in what are now North America, Europe, and Asia, during the Cretaceous Period, although ancestral forms lived earlier, in the Jurassic. ...

. *:Examples: ''

Stegoceras ''Stegoceras'' is a genus of pachycephalosaurid (dome-headed) dinosaur that lived in what is now North America during the Late Cretaceous period, about 77.5 to 74 million years ago (mya). The first specimens from Alberta, Canada, were describe ...

'' ("roof horn"); ''

Triceratops ''Triceratops'' ( ; ) is a genus of herbivore, herbivorous Chasmosaurinae, chasmosaurine Ceratopsidae, ceratopsid dinosaur that first appeared during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period (geology), period, about 68 m ...

'' ("three-horned face"), ''

Orthoceras ''Orthoceras'' ("straight horn") is a genus of extinct nautiloid cephalopod restricted to Middle Ordovician-aged marine limestones of the Baltic States and Sweden. This genus is sometimes called ''Orthoceratites''. Note it is sometimes misspelle ...

'' ("straight horn") ''

Megaloceras ''Megaloceras'' is a genus of the nautiloid Nautiloids are a group of marine cephalopods (Mollusca) which originated in the Late Cambrian and are represented today by the living ''Nautilus'' and '' Allonautilus''. Fossil nautiloids are diver ...

'' ("big horn") ''

Ceratosaurus ''Ceratosaurus'' (from Ancient Greek, Greek κέρας/κέρατος, ' meaning "horn" and wikt:σαῦρος, σαῦρος ' meaning "lizard") was a carnivorous Theropoda, theropod dinosaur in the Late Jurassic Period (geology), period (Kim ...

'' ("horned lizard"); ''

Microceratus ''Microceratus'' (meaning "small-horned") is a genus of small ceratopsian dinosaur that lived in the Cretaceous period in Asia. It walked on two legs, had short front arms, a characteristic ceratopsian frill and beak-like mouth, and was aroun ...

'' ("small horned");

rhinoceros A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...

("nose horn"); ''

Albertoceras ''Albertoceras'' is a genus of Early Ordovician ellesmeroceratids with a small, slender, orthoconic to slightly endogastric shell; some even tiny. The cross section is strongly compressed so as to make the height proportionally notably greater ...

'' ("

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

horn") *cetio-, -cetus: ''Pronunciation'': /sɛtɪoʊ/, /siːtəs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek κῆτος (''kētos''). ''Meaning'': sea-monster. The suffix "-cetus" is used for whales or whale ancestors, while the prefix "cetio-" is used for whale-like or large animals. *:Examples: ''

Peregocetus ''Peregocetus'' is a genus of early whale that lived in what is now Peru during the Middle Eocene epoch. Its fossil was uncovered in 2011 in the Yumaque Formation of the Pisco Basin at Playa Media Luna by a team consisting of members from Bel ...

'' ("Perego whale") ''

Cetiosaurus ''Cetiosaurus'' () meaning 'whale lizard', from the Greek '/ meaning 'sea monster' (later, 'whale') and '/ meaning 'lizard', is a genus of herbivorous sauropod dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic Period, living about 168 million years ago in what ...

'' ("whale lizard"); ''

Ambulocetus ''Ambulocetus'' (Latin ''ambulare'' "to walk" + ''cetus'' "whale") is a genus of early amphibious cetacean from the Kuldana Formation in Pakistan, roughly 48 or 47 million years ago during the Early Eocene (Lutetian). It contains one species, ' ...

'' ("walking whale"); ''

Pakicetus ''Pakicetus'' is an extinct genus of amphibious cetacean of the family Pakicetidae, which was endemic to Pakistan during the Eocene, about 50 million years ago. It was a wolf-like animal, about to long, and lived in and around water where it a ...

'' ("

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

whale") *-cheirus: ''Pronunciation'': /kaɪrəs/. ''Origin'': grc, χείρ (''kheír''). ''Meaning'': hand. *:Examples: ''

Deinocheirus ''Deinocheirus'' ( ) is a genus of large ornithomimosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous around 70 million years ago. In 1965, a pair of large arms, shoulder girdles, and a few other bones of a new dinosaur were first discovered in the Ne ...

'' ("terrible hand"); ''

Ornithocheirus ''Ornithocheirus'' (from Ancient Greek "ὄρνις", meaning ''bird'', and "χεῖρ", meaning ''hand'') is a pterosaur genus known from fragmentary fossil remains uncovered from sediments in the UK and possibly Morocco. Several species have ...

'' ("bird hand"); ''

Austrocheirus ''Austrocheirus'' is an extinct genus of theropod dinosaur, possibly a neoceratosaurian, which existed during the Late Cretaceous period. It was named and described by Martin Ezcurra, Federico Agnolin and Fernando Novas in 2010. It contains the ...

'' ("southern hand"); ''

Haplocheirus ''Haplocheirus'' is a genus of theropod dinosaur. Upon its description, it was considered the oldest alvarezsauroid, predating all other members by about 63 million years. This has subsequently been questioned. A 2019 study considered ''Haploch ...

'' ("simple hand") *chloro-: ''Pronunciation'': /kloroʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, χλωρός (''khlōrós''). ''Meaning'': green. *:Examples:

Chlorophyta Chlorophyta or Prasinophyta is a taxon of green algae informally called chlorophytes. The name is used in two very different senses, so care is needed to determine the use by a particular author. In older classification systems, it refers to ...

("green plant")

Chlorophyll Chlorophyll (also chlorophyl) is any of several related green pigments found in cyanobacteria and in the chloroplasts of algae and plants. Its name is derived from the Greek words , ("pale green") and , ("leaf"). Chlorophyll allow plants to a ...

("green leaf") *choer-: ''Pronunciation'': /koɪroʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, χοίρος (''koíros''). ''Meaning'': pig. *:Examples: ''

Choeroichthys ''Choeroichthys'' is a genus of pipefishes of the family Syngnathidae native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Etymology The genus name is derived from the Greek meaning "a pig" and meaning "fish". Species There are currently six recognized ...

'' ("pig-fish"); ''

Choerophryne ''Choerophryne'' is a genus of microhylid frogs, commonly known as Torricelli mountain frogs, endemic to New Guinea. These frogs are small, with the body length measured from snout to vent between 11 and 23 mm. Taxonomy and systematics The ...

'' ("frog pig"); ''

Choerodon ''Choerodon'' is a genus of wrasses native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean. They are commonly referred to as tuskfish, because most species have sharp tusk-like teeth. Species The 24 currently recognized species in this genus a ...

'' ("pig tooth") *coel-: ''Pronunciation'': /siːl/ or /sɛl/ . ''Origin'': grc, κοῖλος (''koîlos''). ''Meaning'': hollow. *:Examples:

("hollow spine"); ''

Coelodonta ''Coelodonta'' (, from the Greek κοιλία, ''koilía'' and οδούς, ''odoús'', "hollow tooth", in reference to the deep grooves of their molars) is an extinct genus of rhinoceros that lived in Eurasia between 3.7 million years to 10,000 ...

'' ("hollow tooth"); ''

Coelophysis ''Coelophysis'' ( traditionally; or , as heard more commonly in recent decades) is an extinct genus of coelophysid theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 228 to 201.3 million years ago during the latter part of the Triassic Period from t ...

'' ("hollow form") ''

'' (¨hollow at both ends¨) *cyan-, cyano-: ''Pronunciation'': /saɪæno/. ''Origin'': grc, κυάνεος (''kuáneos''). ''Meaning'': dark blue, blue, dark blue-green. *:Examples: ''

Cyanocitta ''Cyanocitta'' is a genus of birds in the family Corvidae, a family which contains the crows, jays and magpies. Established by Hugh Edwin Strickland in 1845, it contains the following species: The name ''Cyanocitta'' is a combination of the Gr ...

'' ("blue jay");

Cyanobacteria Cyanobacteria (), also known as Cyanophyta, are a phylum of gram-negative bacteria that obtain energy via photosynthesis. The name ''cyanobacteria'' refers to their color (), which similarly forms the basis of cyanobacteria's common name, blu ...

("blue bacteria"); ''

Cyanocorax ''Cyanocorax'' is a genus of New World jays, passerine birds in the family Corvidae. The generic name is derived from the Greek words κυανος (''kuanos''), meaning "dark blue," and κοραξ (''korax''), meaning "raven". It contains severa ...

'' ("blue raven") *cyclo-: ''Pronunciation'': /saɪkloʊ/ (or /saɪklɒ/). ''Origin'': grc, κύκλος (''kúklos''). ''Meaning'': circle. *:Examples: ''

Cyclomedusa ''Cyclomedusa'' is a circular fossil of the Ediacaran biota; it has a circular bump in the middle and as many as five circular growth ridges around it. Many specimens are small, but specimens in excess of 20 cm are known. The concentric di ...

'' ("circle

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...

");

Cyclostomata Cyclostomi, often referred to as Cyclostomata , is a group of vertebrates that comprises the living jawless fishes: the lampreys and hagfishes. Both groups have jawless mouths with horny epidermal structures that function as teeth called ceratod ...

("circle mouth") *cyn-, -cyon: ''Pronunciation'': /saɪn/, /saɪɒn/. ''Origin'': grc, κύων (''kúon''). ''Meaning'': dog. Used for dogs or dog-like creatures. *:Examples:

Cynodont The cynodonts () (clade Cynodontia) are a clade of eutheriodont therapsids that first appeared in the Late Permian (approximately 260 mya), and extensively diversified after the Permian–Triassic extinction event. Cynodonts had a wide variety ...

("dog tooth"); ''

Cynognathus ''Cynognathus'' is an extinct genus of large-bodied cynodontian therapsids that lived in the Middle Triassic. It is known from a single species, ''Cynognathus crateronotus''. ''Cynognathus'' was a long predator closely related to mammals and ha ...

'' ("dog jaw"); ''

Cynopterus ''Cynopterus'' (Latin meaning: ״flying dog״) is a genus of megabats. The cynopterine section is represented by 11 genera,Andersen K. 1912. Catalogue of the chiroptera in the collection of the British Museum. Second edition, British Museum of N ...

'' ("dog wing"); ''

'' ("bear dog"); ''

Procyonidae Procyonidae is a New World family of the order Carnivora. It comprises the raccoons, ringtails, cacomistles, coatis, kinkajous, olingos, and olinguitos. Procyonids inhabit a wide range of environments and are generally omnivorous. Character ...

'' ("before the dog"); *-dactyl, -dactylus: ''Pronunciation'': /dæktəl/, /dæktələs/. ''Origin'': grc, δάκτυλος (''dáktulos''). ''Meaning'': finger, toe. *:Examples:

artiodactyl The even-toed ungulates (Artiodactyla , ) are ungulates—hoofed animals—which bear weight equally on two (an even number) of their five toes: the third and fourth. The other three toes are either present, absent, vestigial, or pointing poster ...

("even toe"); ''

Pterodactylus ''Pterodactylus'' (from Greek () meaning 'winged finger') is an extinct genus of pterosaurs. It is thought to contain only a single species, ''Pterodactylus antiquus'', which was the first pterosaur to be named and identified as a flying rept ...

'' ("wing finger");

perissodactyl Odd-toed ungulates, mammals which constitute the taxonomic order Perissodactyla (, ), are animals—ungulates—who have reduced the weight-bearing toes to three (rhinoceroses and tapirs, with tapirs still using four toes on the front legs) o ...

("uneven toe") * -deres: ''Origin'': grc, δέρη (''dére''). ''Meaning'': neck, collar. *:Examples: ''

'' ("spiny neck") *-derm: ''Pronunciation'': /dɜrm/. ''Origin'': grc, δέρμα (''dérma''). ''Meaning'': animal hide. Used for skin. *:Examples: placoderm ("plated skin");

echinoderm An echinoderm () is any member of the phylum Echinodermata (). The adults are recognisable by their (usually five-point) radial symmetry, and include starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, and sea cucumbers, as well as the sea ...

("hedgehog skin");

ostracoderm Ostracoderms () are the armored jawless fish of the Paleozoic Era. The term does not often appear in classifications today because it is paraphyletic (excluding jawed fishes) (may also be polyphyletic if anaspids are closer to cyclostomes) and th ...

("shell skin") *-delphys, -delphis, delpho-: ''Pronunciation'': /dɜlfɪs/, /dɜlfʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, δελφύς ('' delphis''). ''Meaning'': womb. Used for

theria Theria (; Greek: , wild beast) is a subclass of mammals amongst the Theriiformes. Theria includes the eutherians (including the placental mammals) and the metatherians (including the marsupials) but excludes the egg-laying monotremes. Ch ...

n mammals. *:Examples: ''

Sinodelphys ''Sinodelphys'' is an extinct eutherian from the Early Cretaceous, estimated to be 125 million years old. It was discovered and described in 2003 in rocks of the Yixian Formation in Liaoning Province, China, by a team of scientists including Zhe ...

'' ("Chinese womb"); ''

Didelphis ''Didelphis'' is a genus of New World marsupials. The six species in the genus ''Didelphis'', commonly known as Large American opossums, are members of the ''opossum'' order, Didelphimorphia. The genus ''Didelphis'' is composed of cat-sized ...

'' ("two wombs"); ''

Didelphodon ''Didelphodon'' (from ''is''/nowiki>.html" ;"title="/nowiki>''is''/nowiki>">/nowiki>''is''/nowiki> "opossum" plus "tooth") is a genus of stagodont metatherians from the Late Cretaceous of North America. Description Although perhaps little la ...

'' ("two-womb e opossum">opossum.html" ;"title="e opossum">e opossumtooth"); ''Delphinus (genus)">Delphinius'' ("with a womb") *dendro-, -dendron, -dendrum: ''Pronunciation'': /dɛn.dɹoʊ/, /ˈdɛndɹən/, /dɛndɹəm/. ''Origin'': grc">δένδρον (''déndron''). ''Meaning'': tree. *:Examples: '' Rhododendron'' ("rose tree"); ''Liriodendron'' ("lily tree"); ''Dendrocnide">Liriodendron.html" ;"title="Rhododendron'' ("rose tree"); ''Liriodendron">Rhododendron'' ("rose tree"); ''Liriodendron'' ("lily tree"); ''Dendrocnide'' ("tree nettle"); ''Epidendrum'' ("above tree") ''

Lepidodendron ''Lepidodendron'' is an extinct genus of primitive vascular plants belonging to the family Lepidodendraceae, part of a group of Lycopodiopsida known as scale trees or arborescent lycophytes, related to Isoetes, quillworts and Lycopodiopsida, lyco ...

'' (¨scaled tree¨) *di-: ''Pronunciation'': /daɪ/. ''Origin'': grc, δίς (''dís''). ''Meaning'': twice. Used to indicate two of something. *:Examples: ''

Dilophosaurus ''Dilophosaurus'' ( ) is a genus of theropod dinosaurs that lived in what is now North America during the Early Jurassic, about 193 million years ago. Three skeletons were discovered in northern Arizona in 1940, and the two best preserved ...

'' ("twice crested lizard"); '' Diceratops'' ("two-horned face");

diapsid Diapsids ("two arches") are a clade of sauropsids, distinguished from more primitive eureptiles by the presence of two holes, known as temporal fenestrae, in each side of their skulls. The group first appeared about three hundred million years ago ...

("two arches") *dino-, deino-: Pronunciation: /daɪnoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, δεινός (''deinós''). ''Meaning'': "terrible", "formidable". Used for presumably fearfully large or dangerous animals or animal parts. *:Examples:

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

("terrible lizard"), ''

Dinofelis ''Dinofelis'' is a genus of extinct sabre-toothed cats belonging to the tribe Metailurini or possibly Smilodontini. They were widespread in Europe, Asia, Africa and North America at least 5 million to about 1.2 million years ago (Early Pliocene t ...

'' ("terrible cat"), ''

Dinornis The giant moa (''Dinornis'') is an extinct genus of birds belonging to the moa family. As with other moa, it was a member of the order Dinornithiformes. It was endemic to New Zealand. Two species of ''Dinornis'' are considered valid, the North ...

'' ("terrible bird"); ''

Deinonychus ''Deinonychus'' ( ; ) is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur with one described species, ''Deinonychus antirrhopus''. This species, which could grow up to long, lived during the early Cretaceous Period, about 115–108 million ye ...

'' ("terrible claw"), ''

'' ("terrible hand"); '' Dinodocus'' ("terrible beam"); ''

Deinosuchus ''Deinosuchus'' () is an extinct genus of alligatoroid crocodilian, related to modern alligators and caimans, that lived 82 to 73 million years ago (Ma), during the late Cretaceous period. The name translates as "terrible crocodile" and is ...

'' ("terrible crocodile"), ''

Dinohippus ''Dinohippus'' (Greek: "Terrible horse") is an extinct equid which was endemic to North America from the late Hemphillian stage of the Miocene through the Zanclean stage of the Pliocene (10.3—3.6 mya) and in existence for approximately . Fossi ...

'' ("terrible horse"), ''

Dinosorex ''Dinosorex'' is an extinct eulipotyphlan genus, popularly referred to as giant terror shrews due to their fearsome lower incisors. ''Dinosorex'' lived in Europe from the late Oligocene or early Miocene to the late Miocene, with a range that stre ...

'' ("terrible shrew") ''

Deinococcus ''Deinococcus'' (from the el, δεινός, ''deinos'', "dreadful, strange" and κόκκος, ''kókkos'', "granule") is in the monotypic family Deinococcaceae, and one genus of three in the order Deinococcales of the bacterial phylum ''Deinococ ...

'' ("terrible grannule") * diplo-: ''Pronunciation'': /dɪploʊ/, /dɪplo/. ''Origin'': grc, διπλόος, διπλοῦς (''diplóos'', ''diploûs''). ''Meaning'': double. *:Examples: ''

Diplodocus ''Diplodocus'' (, , or ) was a genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaurs, whose fossils were first discovered in 1877 by S. W. Williston. The generic name, coined by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1878, is a neo-Latin term derived from Greek διπ� ...

'' ("double beam");

Diplopoda Millipedes are a group of arthropods that are characterised by having two pairs of jointed legs on most body segments; they are known scientifically as the class Diplopoda, the name derived from this feature. Each double-legged segment is a resu ...

("double feet");

Diplomonad The diplomonads (Greek for "two units") are a group of flagellates, most of which are parasitic. They include ''Giardia duodenalis'', which causes giardiasis in humans. They are placed among the metamonads, and appear to be particularly close r ...

("double unit"); ''

Diplovertebron ''Diplovertebron'' (from el, διπλοῦς , 'double' and la, vertebron, 'vertebra') is an extinct genus of embolomere that lived in the Late Carboniferous period ( Moscovian), about 310 million years ago. ''Diplovertebron'' was a medium-s ...

'' ("double vertebra") *-don, -'', -''donto-: see -odon, -odont, -odonto-. *draco-: ''Pronunciation'': /drakoʊs/ Origin: grc, δράκος (''drákos''). Meaning: dragon. *:Examples: ''

Dracophyllum ''Dracophyllum'' is a genus of plants belonging to the family Ericaceae, formerly Epacridaceae. There are 61 species in the genus, mostly shrubs, but also cushion plants and trees, found in New Zealand, Australia, Lord Howe Island and New Caledon ...

'' ("dragon race"); ''

Dracocephalum ''Dracocephalum'' is a genus of about 60Sonboli, A., et al. (2011)Molecular characterization of Iranian ''Dracocephalum'' (Lamiaceae) species based on RAPD data.''Acta Biologica Szegediensis'' 55(2), 227-30. to 70 speciesLazarević, P., et al. ( ...

'' ("dragon head"); '' Dracaena'' ("female dragon") *dromaeo-, dromeo-, -dromeus: ''Pronunciation'': /droʊmɪoʊ/, /droʊmɪəs/ ''Origin'': grc, δρομαῖος (''dromaîos''). Meaning: runner. *:Examples: ''

Dromaeosaurus ''Dromaeosaurus'' (, "running lizard") is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur which lived during the Late Cretaceous period (middle late Campanian and Maastrichtian), sometime between 80 and 69 million years ago, in Alberta, Canada and the ...

'' ("runner lizard"); ''

Kulindadromeus ''Kulindadromeus'' was a herbivorous dinosaur, a basal neornithischian from the Middle Jurassic. The first ''Kulindadromeus'' fossil was found in Russia. Its feather-like integument is evidence for protofeathers being basal to Ornithischia and ...

'' ("

Kulinda The eighth season of '' NCIS: Los Angeles'', premiered on CBS on Sunday, September 25, 2016 with a two-episode premiere and concluded on May 14, 2017. The season contained 24 episodes. For the 2016-17 U.S. television season, the eighth season of ' ...

runner"); ''

Thalassodromeus ''Thalassodromeus'' is a genus of pterosaur that lived in what is now Brazil during the Early Cretaceous period, about a hundred million years ago. The original skull, discovered in 1983 in the Araripe Basin of northeastern Brazil, was collect ...

'' ("sea runner"); ''

Eodromaeus ''Eodromaeus'' (meaning "dawn runner") is an extinct genus of probable basal theropod dinosaurs from the Late Triassic of Argentina. Like many other of the earliest-known dinosaurs, it hails from the Carnian-age (~230 Ma) Ischigualasto Formation ...

'' ("dawn runner") *eo-: ''Pronunciation'': /iːoʊ̯/. ''Origin'': grc, ἠώς (''ēṓs''). ''Meaning'': dawn. Used for very early appearances of animals in the fossil record. *:Examples: ''

Eohippus ''Eohippus'' is an extinct genus of small equid ungulates. The only species is ''E. angustidens'', which was long considered a species of ''Hyracotherium''. Its remains have been identified in North America and date to the Early Eocene (Ypresian ...

'' ("dawn horse"); ''

Eomaia ''Eomaia'' ("dawn mother") is a genus of extinct fossil mammals containing the single species ''Eomaia scansoria'', discovered in rocks that were found in the Yixian Formation, Liaoning Province, China, and dated to the Barremian Age of the Lower ...

'' ("dawn Maia"); ''

Eoraptor ''Eoraptor'' () is a genus of small, lightly built, basal sauropodomorph. One of the earliest-known dinosaurs, it lived approximately 231 to 228 million years ago, during the Late Triassic in Western Gondwana, in the region that is now northwest ...

'' ("dawn seizer") *-erpeton: ''Pronunciation'': /ɜrpətɒn/. ''Origin'': grc, ἑρπετόν (''herpetón''). ''Meaning'': reptile (literally, "creeping thing"); used for

amphibians Amphibians are four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arbore ...

. *:Examples: ''

Hynerpeton ''Hynerpeton'' ( ) is an extinct genus of early four-limbed vertebrate that lived in the rivers and ponds of Pennsylvania during the Late Devonian period, around 365 to 363 million years ago. The only known species of ''Hynerpeton'' is ''H. basse ...

'' (" Hyner creeper"); ''

Greererpeton ''Greererpeton burkemorani'' ("crawler from Greer, West Virginia") is an extinct genus of colosteid stem-tetrapods from the Early Carboniferous period (late Viséan) of North America. ''Greererpeton'' was first described by famed vertebrate pal ...

'' (" Greer creeper"); ''

Arizonerpeton ''Arizonerpeton'' is an extinct genus of nectridean lepospondyl. It contains a single species, ''Arizonerpeton wellsi''. It lived in what is now the Swisshelm Mountains of modern-day Arizona, United States. This locality belongs to the Black Prin ...

'' ("

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

creeper"); ''

Albanerpeton ''Albanerpeton'' is an extinct genus of salamander-like lissamphibian found in North America and Europe, first appearing in Cretaceous-aged strata. There are eight described members of the genus, and one undiagnosed species from the Paskapoo Form ...

'' ("La Grive Saint Alban creeper") *eu-: ''Pronunciation'': /iːu̟/. ''Origin'': grc, εὖ (''eû''). ''Meaning'': "good", "well"; also extended via

New Latin New Latin (also called Neo-Latin or Modern Latin) is the revival of Literary Latin used in original, scholarly, and scientific works since about 1500. Modern scholarly and technical nomenclature, such as in zoological and botanical taxonomy ...

to mean "true". Used in a variety of ways, often to indicate well-preserved specimens, well-developed bones, "truer" examples of fossil forms, or simply admiration on the part of the discoverer. *:Examples: ''

Euparkeria ''Euparkeria'' (; meaning "Parker's good animal", named in honor of W.K. Parker) is an extinct genus of archosauriform from the Middle Triassic of South Africa. It was a small reptile that lived between 245-230 million years ago, and was close ...

'' ("

Parker's The Smith's Snackfood Company is a British-Australian snack food company owned by American multinational corporation PepsiCo. It is best known for its brand of potato crisps. The company was founded by Frank Smith and Jim Viney in the United K ...

good

nimal Nimal may refer to *Nimal Bandara, Sri Lankan politician *Nimal Gamini Amaratunga, Sri Lankan judge *Nimal Gunaratne, Sri Lankan air force officer *Nimal Mendis, Sri Lankan politician *Nimal Piyatissa (born 1968), Sri Lankan politician *Nimal Raja ...

) ''

Euhelopus ''Euhelopus'' is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived between 145 and 133 million years ago during the Berriasian and Valanginian stages of the Early Cretaceous in what is now Shandong Province in China. It was a large quadrupedal herbivore. U ...

'' ("good marsh foot") ''

Eustreptospondylus ''Eustreptospondylus'' ( ; meaning "true ''Streptospondylus''") is a genus of megalosaurid Theropoda, theropod dinosaur, from the Oxfordian stage of the Late Jurassic period (some time between 163 and 154 million years ago) in southern Eng ...

'' ("true ''

Streptospondylus ''Streptospondylus'' (meaning "reversed vertebra") is a genus of tetanuran theropod dinosaur known from the Late Jurassic period of France, 161 million years ago. It was a medium-sized predator with an estimated length of 6 meters (19.5 ...

''"); ''

Eucoelophysis ''Eucoelophysis'' (meaning "true hollow form") is a genus of silesaurid dinosauriform from the Late Triassic ( Norian) period Chinle Formation of New Mexico. It was assumed to be a coelophysid upon description, but a study by Nesbitt ''et al. ...

'' ("True

") *-felis: ''Pronunciation'': /fiːlɪs/. ''Origin'': la, felis, feles. ''Meaning'': cat. "''

Felis ''Felis'' is a genus of small and medium-sized cat species native to most of Africa and south of 60° latitude in Europe and Asia to Indochina. The genus includes the domestic cat. The smallest ''Felis'' species is the black-footed cat with a he ...

''" alone is the genus name for the group that includes the

domestic cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members o ...

. *:Examples: ''

'' ("terrible cat"); ''

Eofelis ''Eofelis'' is an extinct genus of small nimravid (false saber-toothed cats). They were catlike creatures that evolved in parallel with true cats but are not a part of the true cat lineage and have left no living descendants. Fossils have been f ...

'' ("dawn cat"); '' Pardofelis'' ("leopard cat") *-form, -formes: ''Pronunciation'': /foʊrm/, /foʊrms/. ''Origin'': la, forma. ''Meaning'': shape, form. Used for large groups of animals that share similar characteristics; also used in names of bird and fish orders. *:Examples:

Galliformes Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are often ...

("chicken form");

Anseriformes Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which in ...

("goose form");

Squaliformes The Squaliformes are an order (biology), order of sharks that includes about 126 species in seven families. Members of the order have two dorsal fins, which usually possess spines, they usually have a sharp head, no anal fin or nictitating me ...

("shark form") *giga-, giganto-: ''Pronunciation'': /d͡ʒaɪgə/, /d͡ʒaɪgæntoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, γίγας, γῐ́γᾰντος (''gígas, gigantos''). ''Meaning'': giant, of a giant, respectively. Used for large species. *:Examples: ''

Giganotosaurus ''Giganotosaurus'' ( ) is a genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in what is now Argentina, during the early Cenomanian age of the Late Cretaceous period, approximately 99.6 to 95 million years ago. The holotype specimen was discovered in the ...

'' ("giant southern lizard"); ''

Gigantopithecus ''Gigantopithecus'' ( ; ) is an extinct genus of ape from roughly 2 million to 350,000 years ago during the Early Pleistocene, Early to Middle Pleistocene of southern China, represented by one species, ''Gigantopithecus blacki''. Potential identi ...

'' ("giant ape"); ''

Gigantoraptor ''Gigantoraptor'' () is a genus of large oviraptorosaur dinosaur that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous period. It is known from the Iren Dabasu Formation of Inner Mongolia, where the first remains were found in 2005. ''Gigantoraptor'' wa ...

'' ("giant seizer"); '' Gigantopterus'' ("giant fin") *-gnath-, gnatho-, -gnathus: ''Pronunciation'': /neɪθ/, /neɪθoʊ/, /neɪθəs/ (or /gneɪθəs/). ''Origin'': grc, γνάθος (''gnáthos''). ''Meaning'': jaw. *:Examples: ''

Caenagnathasia ''Caenagnathasia'' ('recent jaw from Asia') is a small caenagnathid oviraptorosaurian theropod from the Late Cretaceous of Uzbekistan. Discovery The type species ''Caenagnathasia martinsoni'' was named and described in 1994 by Philip J. Currie ...

'' ("recent Asian jaw"); ''

Gnathostoma ''Gnathostoma'' is a genus of parasitic nematodes. The species ''Gnathostoma spinigerum'' and ''Gnathostoma hispidum'' can cause gnathostomiasis. Neurognathostomiasis occurs in the USA. ''Gnathostoma binucleatum'' (which is native to the Ameri ...

'' ("jaw mouth"); ''

'' ("dog jaw"); ''

Compsognathus ''Compsognathus'' (; Greek ''kompsos''/κομψός; "elegant", "refined" or "dainty", and ''gnathos''/γνάθος; "jaw") is a genus of small, bipedal, carnivorous theropod dinosaur. Members of its single species ''Compsognathus longipes'' c ...

'' ("elegant jaw"); ''

Gnathosaurus ''Gnathosaurus'' (meaning "jawed lizard") is a genus of ctenochasmatid pterosaur containing two species: ''G. subulatus'', named in 1833 from the Solnhofen Limestone of Germany, and ''G. macrurus'', known from the Purbeck Limestone of the UK. ...

'' ("jaw lizard") *haplo-: ''Pronunciation'': /hæplə/. ''Origin'': grc, ἁπλῶς- (''haplós-''). ''Meaning:'' simple. *:Examples: ''

Haplorhini Haplorhini (), the haplorhines (Greek for "simple-nosed") or the "dry-nosed" primates, is a suborder of primates containing the tarsiers and the simians (Simiiformes or anthropoids), as sister of the Strepsirrhini ("moist-nosed"). The name is some ...

'' ("simple-nosed");

("simple hand") *hemi-: ''Pronunciation'': /hɛmi/. ''Origin'': grc, ἡμι- (''hēmi-''). ''Meaning:'' half. *:Examples: ''

Hemicyon ''Hemicyon'', also known as the "dog-bear" (literally "half dog", from Greek (half) + (dog)), is an extinct genus of hemicyonine bear, which probably originated in Eurasia but was found in Europe, Asia and North America during the Miocen ...

'' ("half-dog");

hemichordate Hemichordata is a phylum which consists of triploblastic, enterocoelomate, and bilaterally symmetrical marine deuterostome animals, generally considered the sister group of the echinoderms. They appear in the Lower or Middle Cambrian and include ...

("half-chordate");

Hemiptera Hemiptera (; ) is an order (biology), order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising over 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, Reduviidae, assassin bugs, Cimex, bed bugs, and shield bugs. ...

("half-wing") *hespero-: ''Pronunciation'': /hɛspəroʊ/. ''Origin'': (''hésperos''). ''Meaning'': western (originally, "evening"). *:Examples: ''

Hesperornis ''Hesperornis'' (meaning "western bird") is a genus of cormorant-like bird that spanned the first half of the Campanian age of the Late Cretaceous period (83.5–78 mya). One of the lesser-known discoveries of the paleontologist O. C. Marsh in ...

'' ("western bird"); ''

Hesperocyon ''Hesperocyon'' is an extinct genus of canids (subfamily Hesperocyoninae, family Canidae) that was endemic to North America, ranging from southern Canada to Colorado. It appeared during the Uintan age, – Bridgerian age (NALMA) of the Mid-Eocene ...

'' ("western dog"); ''

Hesperosaurus ''Hesperosaurus'' (meaning "western lizard", from Classical Greek (') "western" and (') "lizard") is an herbivorous stegosaurian dinosaur from the Kimmeridgian epoch of the Jurassic period, approximately 156 million years ago. Fossils of ''H ...

'' ("western lizard") * hippus, hippo-: Pronunciation: /hɪpəs/, /hɪpoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, ἵππος (''híppos''). ''Meaning'': horse. *:Examples: ''

'' ("dawn horse"); ''

Hippodraco ''Hippodraco'' is a genus of iguanodontian ornithopod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Cedar Mountain Formation of Utah, United States. The genus contains a single species, ''H. scutodens'', known from a partial skeleton belonging to an immatur ...

'' ("horse dragon");

Hippopotamus The hippopotamus ( ; : hippopotamuses or hippopotami; ''Hippopotamus amphibius''), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extan ...

("river horse") *hyl-, hylo-: ''Pronunciation'': /haɪl/, /haɪloʊ/ (or /haɪlɒ/). ''Origin'': grc, ὕλη ("húlē"). ''Meaning:'' wood, forest. *:Examples: ''

Hylonomus ''Hylonomus'' (; ''hylo-'' "forest" + ''nomos'' "dweller") is an extinct genus of reptile that lived 312 million years ago during the Late Carboniferous period. It is the earliest unquestionable reptile (''Westlothiana'' is older, but in fact it ...

'' ("forest dweller"); ''

'' ("forest walker"); ''

Hylarana ''Hylarana'', commonly known as golden-backed frogs, is a genus of true frogs found in tropical Asia. It was formerly considered highly diverse, containing around 84 to 96 Valid name (zoology), valid species, but taxonomic revision resulted in a ...

'' ("forest frog") *-ia: ''Pronunciation'': /iːə/. ''Origin'': grc, -ια, -εια (''-ia, -eia''). ''Meaning:'' an abstraction usually used as an honorific for a person or place. *:Examples: ''

Dickinsonia ''Dickinsonia'' is an extinct genus of basal animal that lived during the late Ediacaran period in what is now Australia, China, Russia and Ukraine. The individual ''Dickinsonia'' typically resembles a bilaterally symmetrical ribbed oval. Its a ...

'' ("for Dickinson"); ''

Cooksonia ''Cooksonia'' is an extinct group of primitive land plants, treated as a genus, although probably not monophyletic. The earliest ''Cooksonia'' date from the middle of the Silurian (the Wenlock epoch); the group continued to be an important comp ...

'' ("for Cookson"); '' Coloradia'' ("for

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

"); ''

Edmontonia ''Edmontonia'' is a genus of panoplosaurin nodosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Period. It is part of the Nodosauridae, a family within Ankylosauria. It is named after the Edmonton Formation (now the Horseshoe Canyon Formation in Canada) ...

'' ("for

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

"); '' Thomashuxleya'' ("for

Thomas Huxley Thomas Henry Huxley (4 May 1825 – 29 June 1895) was an English biologist and anthropologist specialising in comparative anatomy. He has become known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The storie ...

") *ichthyo-, -ichthys: ''Pronunciation'': /ɪkθioʊs/, /ɪkθis/. ''Origin'': grc, ἰχθῦς (''ikhthûs''). ''Meaning'': fish. The suffix "-ichthys" is used for fish, while the prefix "ichthyo-", while used for fish, is also used for fish-like creatures. *:Examples: ''

Ichthyosaurus ''Ichthyosaurus'' (derived from Greek ' () meaning 'fish' and ' () meaning 'lizard') is a genus of ichthyosaurs from the Early Jurassic ( Hettangian - Pliensbachian), with possible Late Triassic record, from Europe (Belgium, England, Germany, S ...

'' ("fish lizard"); ''

Leedsichthys ''Leedsichthys'' is an extinct genus of pachycormid fish that lived in the oceans of the Middle to Late Jurassic.Liston, JJ (2004). An overview of the pachycormiform ''Leedsichthys''. In: Arratia G and Tintori A (eds) Mesozoic Fishes 3 - System ...

'' ("Leeds's fish"); ''

Haikouichthys ''Haikouichthys'' is an extinct genus of craniate (animals with notochords and distinct heads) that lived 518 million years ago, during the Cambrian explosion of multicellular life. ''Haikouichthys'' had a defined skull and other characteristic ...

'' ("

Haikou Haikou (; ), also spelled as Hoikow is the capital and most populous city of the Chinese province of Hainan. Haikou city is situated on the northern coast of Hainan, by the mouth of the Nandu River. The northern part of the city is on the Ha ...

fish"); ''

Ichthyostega ''Ichthyostega'' (from el, ἰχθῦς , 'fish' and el, στέγη , 'roof') is an extinct genus of limbed tetrapodomorphs from the Late Devonian of Greenland. It was among the earliest four-limbed vertebrates in the fossil record, and was on ...

'' ("fish roof") *-lania, ''Pronunciation'': /læniːə/, ''Origin'': grc, ἀλαίνειν (''alaínein''): ''Meaning'': to wander. Used for animals that are found in most places around continents. *:Examples: ''

Meiolania ''Meiolania'' ("small roamer") is an extinct genus of meiolaniid stem-turtle native to Australasia from the Middle Miocene to Late Pleistocene and possibly Holocene. It is best known from fossils found on Lord Howe Island, though fossils are know ...

'' ("weak wanderer"); ''

Megalania Megalania (''Varanus priscus'') is an extinct species of giant monitor lizard, part of the megafaunal assemblage that inhabited Australia during the Pleistocene. It is the largest terrestrial lizard known to have existed, reaching an estimated ...

'' ("great wanderer") *leo-: Pronunciation: /lɛʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, λέων (''léon''): Meaning: lion. *:Examples: ''

Leopardus ''Leopardus'' is a genus comprising eight species of small cats native to the Americas. This genus is considered the oldest branch of a genetic lineage of small cats in the Americas whose common ancestor crossed the Bering land bridge from Asia ...

'' ("spotted lion"); ''

Leontopodium ''Leontopodium'' is a genus of plants in the family Asteraceae. The genus is native to Europe and Asia. The fuzzy and somewhat stocky "petals" (technically, bracts) could be thought of as somewhat resembling lions' paws—hence the genus nam ...

'' ("lion foot"); ''

Leontopithecus The four species of lion tamarins or maned marmosets make up the genus ''Leontopithecus''. They are small New World monkeys named for the mane surrounding their face, similar to the mane of a lion. Description Living in the eastern rainforests ...

'' ("lion ape") *-lepis, lepido-: ''Pronunciation'': /lɛpɪs/ /lɛpɪdoʊ/ (or /lɛpɪdɒ/). ''Origin'': grc, λεπίς ('). ''Meaning'': scale. *:Examples: '' Mongolepis'' ("Mongol scale"); ''

Stagonolepis ''Stagonolepis'' is an extinct genus of stagonolepidid aetosaur known from the Late Triassic (Carnian stage) Hassberge Formation of Germany, the Drawno Beds of Poland, and the Lossiemouth Sandstone of Scotland. Supposed fossils from North and ...

'' ("ornamented scale"); '' Polymerolepis'' ("many part scale");

Lepidosauria The Lepidosauria (, from Greek meaning ''scaled lizards'') is a subclass or superorder of reptiles, containing the orders Squamata and Rhynchocephalia. Squamata includes snakes, lizards, and amphisbaenians. Squamata contains over 9,000 species, m ...

("scaled lizards"); ''

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

'' ("scaled wing"); ''

'' ("scaled tree") *-lestes: ''Pronunciation'': /lɛstiːz/. ''Origin'': grc, λῃστής ('')''. ''Meaning'': robber. *:Examples: ''

Carpolestes ''Carpolestes'' ("fruit thief" from Ancient Greek κᾰρπός (karpós), “fruit, grain” + λῃστής (lēistḗs), “thief”) is a genus of extinct primate-like mammals from the late Paleocene of North America. It first existed arou ...

'' ("fruit robber"); ''

Ornitholestes ''Ornitholestes'' (meaning "bird robber") is a small theropod dinosaur of the late Jurassic (Brushy Basin Member of the Morrison Formation, middle Kimmeridgian age, about 154 million years agoTurner, C.E. and Peterson, F., (1999). "Biostratigraph ...

'' ("bird robber"); ''

Sarcolestes ''Sarcolestes'' (meaning "flesh robber") is an extinct genus of ankylosaurian ornithischian dinosaur from the Oxford Clay of England. The current type and only species is ''S. leedsi'', and the holotype is a single partial left mandible. The ...

'' ("flesh robber"); ''

Necrolestes ''Necrolestes'' ("grave robber" or "thief of the dead") is an extinct genus of mammals, which lived during the Early Miocene in what is now Argentine Patagonia. It is the most recent known genus of Meridiolestida, an extinct group of mammals m ...

'' ("grave robber") *long: ''Pronunciation'': /lʊng/. ''Origin'': zh, s=龙, t=龍. ''Meaning'': dragon. Used for dinosaur finds in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. *:Examples: ''

Mei long ''Mei'' (from Chinese 寐 mèi ''Sleepy'') is a genus of duck-sized troodontid dinosaur first unearthed by paleontologists from the Yixian Formation in Liaoning, China in 2004. ''Mei'' lived during the Early Cretaceous period. The binomial name ...

'' ("sleeping dragon"); ''

Bolong ''Bolong'' (meaning "Bo's dragon") is a genus of iguanodontian dinosaur known from the Early Cretaceous-age Yixian Formation of western Liaoning Province, China. It lived about 125 million years ago in the earliest Aptian. Discovery and naming ...

'' ("small dragon"); ''

Zuolong ''Zuolong'' (Zuo's dragon) is a genus of coelurosaur dinosaur which existed in what is now Wucaiwan, Xinjiang Autonomous Region of China during the Late Jurassic period (lower Oxfordian stage). It was found in the Shishugou Formation, Xinjiang, ...

'' (" Zuo's dragon"); ''

Shaochilong ''Shaochilong'' (meaning "shark toothed dragon") is an extinct genus of carcharodontosaurid dinosaur from the mid-Cretaceous (Late Cenomanian to the end of the Turonian stage) Ulansuhai Formation of China (about 92 million years ago). The type sp ...

'' ("shark toothed dragon") *-lopho-, -lophus: ''Pronunciation'': /lɒfoʊ/, /ləfəs/. ''Origin'': grc, λόφος ('). ''Meaning'': A bird's crest. Used for animals with crests on their heads. *:Examples: ''

'' ("two-crested lizard"); ''

'' ("short-crested lizard"); ''

Saurolophus ''Saurolophus'' (; meaning "lizard crest") is a genus of large hadrosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous period of Asia and North America, that lived in what is now the Horseshoe Canyon and Nemegt formations about 70 million to 68 million ...

'' ("lizard crest") * lyco-: ''Pronunciation'': /lɪkoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, λύκος ('). ''Meaning'': wolf. *:Examples: ''

Lycopodium ''Lycopodium'' (from Greek ''lykos'', wolf and ''podion'', diminutive of ''pous'', foot) is a genus of clubmosses, also known as ground pines or creeping cedars, in the family Lycopodiaceae. Two very different circumscriptions of the genus are i ...

'' ("wolf foot"); ''

Lycodon ''Lycodon'' is a genus of colubrid snakes, commonly known as wolf snakes. The New Latin name ''Lycodon'' is derived from the Greek words λύκος (''lykos'') meaning wolf and οδόν (''odon'') meaning tooth, and refers to the fang-like ant ...

'' ("wolf tooth"); ''

Lycoperdon ''Lycoperdon'' is a genus of puffball mushrooms. The genus has a widespread distribution and contains about 50 species. In general, it contains the smaller species such as the pear-shaped puffball and the gem-studded puffball. It was formerly cl ...

'' ("wolf fart") *macro-: ''Pronunciation'': /mækroʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, μακρός (''makrós''). ''Meaning'': (correctly) long; (usually) large. *:Examples: macropod ("big foot"); ''

Macrodontophion ''Macrodontophion'' (meaning "long-toothed snake") is the name given to a dubious genus of lophotrochozoan from the Early Devonian Dniester Series of Podolia, Ukraine. It was described by Adalbert Zborzewsky in 1834, but was never given a species ...

'' ("big tooth snake"); ''

Macrogryphosaurus ''Macrogryphosaurus'' (meaning "big enigmatic lizard") is a genus of elasmarian dinosaur from the Coniacian age Upper Cretaceous Sierra Barrosa Formation (Neuquén Group) of Argentina in Patagonia. It was described by Jorge Calvo and colleagues ...

'' ("big enigmatic lizard") *-maia, maia-: ''Pronunciation'': /meiə/ ''Origin'': grc, Μαῖα (''Maîa''). ''Meaning'': Originally the mother of Hermes in Greek mythology and the goddess of growth in Roman mythology, alternatively spelled Maja. Frequently used to indicate maternal roles, this word should not be construed as translating directly to "mother" (Latin māter; Ancient Greek μήτηρ ''mḗtēr''); aside from being a proper name, in Ancient Greek "maîa" can translate to "midwife" or "foster mother" and was used as an honorific address for older women, typically translated into English as "Good Mother". *:Examples: ''

Maiasaura ''Maiasaura'' (from the Greek ''μαῖα'', meaning "good mother" and ''σαύρα'', the feminine form of ''saurus'', meaning "reptile") is a large herbivorous saurolophine hadrosaurid ("duck-billed") dinosaur genus that lived in the area curre ...

'' ("Good Mother/Maia's lizard"); ''

'' ("dawn Maia"); ''

Juramaia ''Juramaia'' is an extinct genus of very basal eutherian mammal known from the Late Jurassic ( Oxfordian stage) deposits of western Liaoning, China. It is a small shrew-like mammal with a body length of approximately 70–100 mm, making it ...

'' (

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

Maia"); ''

Maiacetus ''Maiacetus'' ("mother whale") is a genus of early middle Eocene (c. 47.5 mya) cetacean from the Habib Rahi Formation of Pakistan. Paleobiology The genus contains a single species, ''Maiacetus inuus'', first described in 2009 on the basis of ...

'' ("mother whale") *mega-, megalo-: ''Pronunciation'': /mɛga/, /mɛgaloʊ̯/. ''Origin'': grc, μέγας, μεγάλη (''mégas, megálē''). ''Meaning'': big. *:Examples: ''

Megarachne ''Megarachne'' is a genus of eurypterid, an extinct group of aquatic arthropods. Fossils of ''Megarachne'' have been discovered in deposits of Late Carboniferous age, from the Gzhelian stage, in San Luis, Argentina. The fossils of the single and ...

'' ("big spider"); ''

Megalosaurus ''Megalosaurus'' (meaning "great lizard", from Greek , ', meaning 'big', 'tall' or 'great' and , ', meaning 'lizard') is an extinct genus of large carnivorous theropod dinosaurs of the Middle Jurassic period (Bathonian stage, 166 million years a ...

'' ("big lizard"); ''

megalodon Megalodon (''Otodus megalodon''), meaning "big tooth", is an extinct species of mackerel shark that lived approximately 23 to 3.6 million years ago (Mya), from the Early Miocene to the Pliocene epochs. It was formerly thought to be a member ...

'' ("big tooth") *micro-: ''Pronunciation'': /maɪkroʊ̯/. ''Origin'': grc, μικρός (''mikrós''). ''Meaning'': "small". *:Examples: ''

Microraptor ''Microraptor'' (Greek, μικρός, ''mīkros'': "small"; Latin, ''raptor'': "one who seizes") is a genus of small, four-winged dromaeosaurid dinosaurs. Numerous well-preserved fossil specimens have been recovered from Liaoning, China. They dat ...

'' ("small seizer") ''

Microvenator ''Microvenator'' (meaning "small hunter") is a genus of dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Cloverly Formation in what is now south central Montana. ''Microvenator'' was an oviraptorosaurian theropod. The holotype fossil is an incomplete skeleton ...

'' ("small hunter"); '' Microceratops'' ("small horned face") *mimo-, -mimus: /maɪmoʊ̯/, /maɪməs/. ''Origin'': la, mimus. ''Meaning'': actor. Used for creatures that resemble others. *:Examples: ''

Struthiomimus ''Struthiomimus'' (meaning "ostrich mimic", from the Ancient Greek, Greek στρούθειος/''stroutheios'' meaning "of the ostrich" and μῖμος/''mimos'' meaning "mimic" or "imitator") is a genus of Ornithomimidae, ornithomimid dinosaurs ...

''; ("ostrich mimic"); ''

Ornithomimus ''Ornithomimus'' (; "bird mimic") is a genus of ornithomimid dinosaurs from the Late Cretaceous Period of what is now North America. ''Ornithomimus'' was a swift bipedal theropod which fossil evidence indicates was covered in feathers, equipped w ...

'' ("bird mimic"); ''

Gallimimus ''Gallimimus'' ( ) is a genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in what is now Mongolia during the Late Cretaceous period, about seventy million years ago (mya). Several fossils in various stages of growth were discovered by Polish-Mongolian exped ...

'' ("chicken mimic"); ornithomimosaur ("bird mimic lizard") * -monas, -monad: ''Pronunciation'': /moʊnas/, /monas/, /moʊnad/, /monad/. ''Origin'': grc, μονάς (''monás''). ''Meaning'': unit. Used for single-celled organisms. *:Examples: ''

Chlamydomonas ''Chlamydomonas'' is a genus of green algae consisting of about 150 speciesSmith, G.M. 1955 ''Cryptogamic Botany Volume 1. Algae and Fungi'' McGraw-Hill Book Company Inc of unicellular flagellates, found in stagnant water and on damp soil, ...

'' ("cloak unit"); ''

Pseudomonas ''Pseudomonas'' is a genus of Gram-negative, Gammaproteobacteria, belonging to the family Pseudomonadaceae and containing 191 described species. The members of the genus demonstrate a great deal of metabolic diversity and consequently are able ...

'' ("false unit");

Metamonad The metamonads are microscopic eukaryotic organisms, a large group of flagellate amitochondriate Loukozoa. Their composition is not entirely settled, but they include the retortamonads, diplomonads, and possibly the parabasalids and oxymonads a ...

("encompassing unit") *-morph: ''Pronunciation'': /moʊrf/. ''Origin'': grc, μορφή (''morphḗ''). ''Meaning'': form, shape. Used for large groups of animals which share a common genetic lineage *:Examples:

crocodylomorphs Crocodylomorpha is a group of pseudosuchian archosaurs that includes the crocodilians and their extinct relatives. They were the only members of Pseudosuchia to survive the end-Triassic extinction. During Mesozoic and early Cenozoic times, cr ...

("crocodile form");

sauropodomorphs Sauropodomorpha ( ; from Greek, meaning "lizard-footed forms") is an extinct clade of long-necked, herbivorous, saurischian dinosaurs that includes the sauropods and their ancestral relatives. Sauropods generally grew to very large sizes, had lon ...

sauropod Sauropoda (), whose members are known as sauropods (; from '' sauro-'' + '' -pod'', 'lizard-footed'), is a clade of saurischian ('lizard-hipped') dinosaurs. Sauropods had very long necks, long tails, small heads (relative to the rest of their bo ...

form");

Muscomorpha The Brachyceran infraorder Muscomorpha is a large and diverse group of flies, containing the bulk of the Brachycera, and, most of the known flies. It includes a number of the most familiar flies, such as the housefly, the fruit fly, and the blo ...

fly Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwing ...

form") ''

Dimorphodon ''Dimorphodon'' was a genus of medium-sized pterosaur from the early Jurassic Period. It was named by paleontologist Richard Owen in 1859. ''Dimorphodon'' means "two-form tooth", derived from the Greek (') meaning "two", (') meaning "shape" an ...

'' ("two forms of teeth") *-nax, -anax-: ''Pronunciation'': /nax/, /ænax/. ''Origin:'' grc, ἄναξ (''ánax''). ''Meaning'': king. *:Examples: ''

Lythronax ''Lythronax'' () is a genus of tyrannosaurid dinosaur that lived in North America around 81.9-81.5 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous period. The only known specimen was discovered in Utah in the Wahweap Formation of the Grand Stairca ...

'' ("gore king") ''

Saurophaganax ''Saurophaganax'' ("lord of lizard-eaters") is a genus of large allosaurid dinosaur from the Morrison Formation of Late Jurassic (latest Kimmeridgian age, about 151 million years ago) Oklahoma, United States.Turner, C.E. and Peterson, F., (1999) ...

'' ("king of the lizard-eaters") *-noto-: ''Pronunciation'': /notoʊ/. ''Origin'': . ''Meaning'': south, southern wind. Used for organisms found in the Southern Hemisphere. *:Examples: ''

'' ("giant southern lizard"); ''

Notosuchus ''Notosuchus'' (; 'southern crocodile') is an extinct genus of South American notosuchian crocodylomorph. It was terrestrial, living approximately 85 million years ago in the Santonian stage of the Late Cretaceous. Description ''Notosuchus'' wa ...

'' ("southern crocodile");

Notopalaeognathae Notopalaeognathae is a clade that contains the order Rheiformes (rheas), the clade Novaeratitae (birds such as the kiwis and the emus), the order Tinamiformes (tinamous) and the extinct order Dinornithiformes (the moas). The exact relationships ...

("southern old jaws") *-nych, nycho-, -nyx: see -onych, onycho-, -onyx. *-odon, -odont, -odonto-: ''Pronunciation'': /oʊdɒn/, /oʊdɒnt/, /oʊdɒntoʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, ὀδούς (''odoús''). ''Meaning'': tooth. *:Examples: ''

Dimetrodon ''Dimetrodon'' ( or ,) meaning "two measures of teeth,” is an extinct genus of non-mammalian synapsid that lived during the Cisuralian (Early Permian), around 295–272 million years ago (Mya). It is a member of the family Sphenacodontid ...

'' ("two-measures of teeth"),

cynodont The cynodonts () (clade Cynodontia) are a clade of eutheriodont therapsids that first appeared in the Late Permian (approximately 260 mya), and extensively diversified after the Permian–Triassic extinction event. Cynodonts had a wide variety ...

("dog tooth") ''

'' ("serrated tooth lizard") *-oides, -odes: ''Pronunciation'': /oiːdiːz/, /oʊːdiːz/. ''Origin'': grc, εἶδος (''eîdos''). ''Meaning'': likeness. Used for species that resemble other species. *:Examples: ''

Hypocnemoides ''Hypocnemoides'' is a genus of passerine bird in the antbird family, Thamnophilidae. It contains two species, the black-chinned antbird (''H. melanopogon'') and the band-tailed antbird (''H. maculicauda'').Ridgely, Robert S. & Guy Tudor (1994) ...

'' ("like

Hypocnemis ''Hypocnemis'' is a genus of passerine birds in the family Thamnophilidae. They are resident breeders in tropical Central and South America. The genus ''Hypocnemis'' was introduced by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis in 1847. The name comb ...

"); ''

Aetobarbakinoides ''Aetobarbakinoides'' is an extinct genus of stagonolepidid aetosaur known from the Late Triassic of Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil. Fossils have been found from the Santa Maria Supersequence of the late Carnian and early Norian stages, ...

'' ("like the

long-legged buzzard The long-legged buzzard (''Buteo rufinus'') is a bird of prey found widely in several parts of Eurasia and in North Africa. This species ranges from Southeastern Europe down to East Africa to the northern part of the Indian subcontinent. The long ...

"); ''

Callianthemoides ''Callianthemoides'' is a genus of plants in the family Ranunculaceae, with a single species, ''Callianthemoides semiverticillata''. Native to screes in northern Patagonia, it has divided greyish or reddish green leaves and large white or pink fl ...

'' ("like ''

Callianthemum ''Callianthemum'' is a genus that consists of 24 species of little rhizomatous In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creep ...

''"); ''

Argyrodes ''Argyrodes'', also called dewdrop spiders, is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1864. They occur worldwide, and are best known for their kleptoparasitism. They can spin their own webs, but tend to ...

'' ("like silver") *onycho-, -onychus, -onyx: /ɒnikoʊ/, /ɒnikəs/ (or /ɒnaɪkoʊ/, ɒnaɪkəs/), /ɒniks/. ''Origin'': grc, ὄνυξ (''ónux''). ''Meaning'': claw. *:Examples: ''

'' ("terrible claw"); '' Euronychodon'' ("European claw tooth"); ''

Nothronychus ''Nothronychus'' (meaning "slothful claw") is a genus of therizinosaurid theropod dinosaurs that lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous period. The type species, ''Nothronychus mckinleyi'', was described by James Kirkland and Douglas ...

'' ("sloth claw"), ''

Baryonyx ''Baryonyx'' () is a genus of theropod dinosaur which lived in the Barremian stage of the Early Cretaceous period, about 130–125 million years ago. The first skeleton was discovered in 1983 in the Smokejack Clay Pit, of Surrey, England, in se ...

'' ("heavy claw") *ophi-: ''Pronunciation'': /ɒfɪs/. ''Origin'': grc, ὄφις (''óphis''). ''Meaning'': snake. Used for

Ophidia __FORCETOC__ Ophidia (also known as Pan-Serpentes) is a group of squamate reptiles including modern snakes and reptiles more closely related to snakes than to other living groups of lizards. Ophidia was defined as the "most recent common ancesto ...

or snake-like animals. *:Examples: ''

Ophiacodon ''Ophiacodon'' (meaning "snake tooth") is an extinct genus of synapsid belonging to the family Ophiacodontidae that lived from the Late Carboniferous to the Early Permian in North America and Europe. The genus was named along with its type spec ...

'' ("snake tooth"); ''

Ophisaurus ''Ophisaurus'' (from the Greek 'snake-lizard') is a genus of superficially snake-like lizards in the family Anguidae. Known as joint snakes, glass snakes, or glass lizards, they are so-named because their tails are easily broken; like many liz ...

'' ("snake lizard"); ''

Ophiopogon ''Ophiopogon'' (lilyturf) is a genus of evergreen perennial plants native to warm temperate to tropical East, Southeast, and South Asia. Despite their grasslike appearance, they are not closely related to the true grasses, the Poaceae. The name ...

'' ("snake beard") *-ops: ''Pronunciation'': /ɒps/. ''Origin'': grc, ὄψ (''óps''). ''Meaning'': face. *:Examples: ''

'' ("three-horned face"); ''

Lycaenops ''Lycaenops'' ("wolf-face") is a genus of carnivorous therapsids. It lived during the Middle Permian to the early Late Permian, about 260 mya, in what is now South Africa. Description ''Lycaenops'' measured about and weighed up to . Like the ...

'' ("wolf face"); ''

Moschops ''Moschops'' (Greek for "calf face") is an extinct genus of therapsids that lived in the Guadalupian epoch, around 265–260 million years ago. They were heavily built plant eaters, and they may have lived partly in water, as hippopotamuses do. ...

'' ("calf face"); ''

Spinops ''Spinops'' is an extinct genus of centrosaurine ceratopsian dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Alberta, southern Canada. It was a medium-sized ceratopsian, reaching in length and in body mass. Discovery and naming ''Spinops'' is known fro ...

'' ("spine face") *-ornis, ornith-, ornitho-: ''Pronunciation'': /oʊ̯rnɪs/, /oʊ̯rnɪθ/, /oʊ̯rnɪθoʊ̯/. ''Origin'': grc, ὄρνις, ὄρνιθος (''órnis, órnithos''). ''Meaning'': bird, of a bird respectively. "ornith-" and "ornitho-" are generally used for animals with birdlike characteristics; the suffix "-ornis" is generally applied to fossil bird species. *:Examples:

ornithischian Ornithischia () is an extinct order of mainly herbivorous dinosaurs characterized by a pelvic structure superficially similar to that of birds. The name ''Ornithischia'', or "bird-hipped", reflects this similarity and is derived from the Greek s ...

("bird-hipped"); ''

'' ("bird-hand"); ''

Eoconfuciusornis ''Eoconfuciusornis'' a genus of extinct avialan that lived 131 Ma ago, in the Early Cretaceous of China. The type species of ''Eoconfuciusornis'', ''Eoconfuciusornis zhengi'', was named and described by Zhang Fucheng, Zhou Zhonghe and Michae ...

'' ("

Confucius Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...

's dawn bird") *pachy-: ''Pronunciation'': /pæki/ ''Origin'': grc, παχύς (''pakhús''). ''Meaning'': thick. *:Examples: ''

'' ("thick-headed lizard"); ''

Pachylemur ''Pachylemur'' is an extinct, giant lemur most closely related to the ruffed lemurs of genus ''Varecia''. Two species are known, ''Pachylemur insignis'' and ''Pachylemur jullyi'', although there is some doubt as to whether or not they may actua ...

'' ("thick lemur"); '' Pachyuromys'' ("thick tailed mouse");

Pachydermata Pachydermata (meaning 'thick skin', from the Greek grc, παχύς, pachys, thick, label=none, and grc, δέρμα, derma, skin, label=none) is an obsolete order of mammals described by Gottlieb Storr, Georges Cuvier, and others, at one time re ...

("thick skin") *para-: ''Pronunciation'': /pærɑː/ ''Origin'': grc, παρά (''pará''). ''Meaning'': near. Used for species that resemble previously named species. *:Examples: ''

Paranthodon ''Paranthodon'' ( ) is a genus of stegosaurian dinosaur that lived in what is now South Africa during the Early Cretaceous, between 139 and 131 million years ago. Discovered in 1845, it was one of the first stegosaurians found. Its only rem ...

'' ("near '' Anthodon''"); ''

Pararhabdodon ''Pararhabdodon'' (meaning "near fluted tooth" in reference to ''Rhabdodon'') is a genus of tsintaosaurin hadrosaurid dinosaur, from the Maastrichtian-age Upper Cretaceous Tremp Group of Spain. The first remains were discovered from the Sant Rom� ...

'' ("near ''

Rhabdodon ''Rhabdodon'' (meaning "fluted tooth") is a genus of ornithopod dinosaur that lived in Europe approximately 70-66 million years ago in the Late Cretaceous. It is similar in build to a very robust "hypsilophodont" (non-iguanodont ornithopod), thou ...

''"); ''

Parasaurolophus ''Parasaurolophus'' (; meaning "near crested lizard" in reference to '' Saurolophus)'' is a genus of herbivorous hadrosaurid ornithopod dinosaur that lived in what is now North America and possibly Asia during the Late Cretaceous Period, abou ...

'' ("near ''

'')" * -pelta: ''Pronunciation'': / pɛltə:/ ''Origin'': grc, πέλτη (''péltē''). ''Meaning'': shield. Frequently used for

ankylosaurs Ankylosauria is a group of herbivorous dinosaurs of the order Ornithischia. It includes the great majority of dinosaurs with armor in the form of bony osteoderms, similar to turtles. Ankylosaurs were bulky quadrupeds, with short, powerful limbs. ...

. *:Examples: ''

Sauropelta ''Sauropelta'' ( ; meaning 'lizard shield') is a genus of nodosaurid dinosaur that existed in the Early Cretaceous Period of North America. One species (''S. edwardsorum'') has been named although others may have existed. Anatomically, ''Saurop ...

'' ("lizard shield"); ''

Dracopelta ''Dracopelta'' (meaning “dragon shield”) is a monospecific genus of ankylosaur dinosaur from Portugal that lived during the Late Jurassic (uppermost lower Tithonian-upper Tithonian, 152.1-145.0 Ma) in what is now the Lourinhã Formation. The ...

'' ("dragon shield"); ''

Cedarpelta ''Cedarpelta'' is a extinct genus of basal ankylosaurid Ankylosauridae () is a family of armored dinosaurs within Ankylosauria, and is the sister group to Nodosauridae. The oldest known Ankylosaurids date to around 122 million years ago and we ...

'' ("

Cedar Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae *Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona * ...

shield") *-philus, -phila, philo-: ''Pronunciation'': /fiːləs/, /fiːlə/, /fiːloʊ/. ''Origin'': (''phílos''). ''Meaning'': dear, beloved, loving. Used for organisms perceived as having a fondness for a particular thing. *:Examples: ''

Sarcophilus ''Sarcophilus'' is a genus of carnivorous marsupial best known for its only living member, the Tasmanian devil. Sarcophilus is Latin - meaning 'flesh-loving'. There are four species of ''Sarcophilus''. '' S. laniarius'' and '' S. moornaensis'' ...

'' ("flesh-loving"); ''

Drosophila ''Drosophila'' () is a genus of flies, belonging to the family Drosophilidae, whose members are often called "small fruit flies" or (less frequently) pomace flies, vinegar flies, or wine flies, a reference to the characteristic of many species ...

'' ("dew-loving");

("flower-loving"); ''

Philodendron ''Philodendron'' is a large genus of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Araceae. , the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families accepted 489 species; other sources accept different numbers. Regardless of number of species, the gen ...

'' ("loving trees") *-phyton, -phyta, phyto-, -phyte: ''Pronunciation'': /faɪtən/, /faitə/, /faɪtoʊ/, /faɪt/. ''Origin'': (''phutón''). ''Meaning'': plant. *:Examples: ''

Spermatophyta A spermatophyte (; ), also known as phanerogam (taxon Phanerogamae) or phaenogam (taxon Phaenogamae), is any plant that produces seeds, hence the alternative name seed plant. Spermatophytes are a subset of the embryophytes or land plants. They inc ...

'' ("seed plant");

Rhyniophyte The rhyniophytes are a group of extinct early vascular plants that are considered to be similar to the genus ''Rhynia'', found in the Early Devonian (around ). Sources vary in the name and rank used for this group, some treating it as the class R ...

(" Rhynie plant"); ''

Phytophthora ''Phytophthora'' (from Greek language, Greek (''phytón''), "plant" and (), "destruction"; "the plant-destroyer") is a genus of plant-damaging oomycetes (water molds), whose member species are capable of causing enormous economic losses on cro ...

'' ("plant destroyer"); ''

Phytolacca ''Phytolacca'' is a genus of perennial plants native to North America, South America and East Asia. Some members of the genus are known as pokeweeds or similar names such as pokebush, pokeberry, pokeroot or poke sallet. Other names for species ...

'' ("plant

lac Lac is the resinous secretion of a number of species of lac insects, of which the most commonly cultivated is ''Kerria lacca''. Cultivation begins when a farmer gets a stick that contains eggs ready to hatch and ties it to the tree to be infes ...

") *-pithecus, pitheco-: ''Pronunciation'': /piθəkəs/, /piθəkoʊ/, //piθəkə/. ''Origin'': grc, πίθηκος (''píthēkos''). ''Meaning'': ape, monkey. *:Examples: ''

Australopithecus ''Australopithecus'' (, ; ) is a genus of early hominins that existed in Africa during the Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene. The genus ''Homo'' (which includes modern humans) emerged within ''Australopithecus'', as sister to e.g. ''Australopi ...

'' ("southern ape"); ''

Ardipithecus ''Ardipithecus'' is a genus of an extinct hominine that lived during the Late Miocene and Early Pliocene epochs in the Afar Depression, Ethiopia. Originally described as one of the earliest ancestors of humans after they diverged from the chimpa ...

'' ("floor ape"); ''

'' ("giant ape"); ''

Pithecellobium ''Pithecellobium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. The generic name is derived from the Greek words πίθηκος (''pithêkos''), meaning "ape" or "monkey," and ἐλλόβιον (''ellobion''), meaning "earring," which r ...

'' ("monkey earring") *platy-: ''Pronunciation'': /ˈplætɪ/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek πλατύς (''platús''). ''Meaning'': flat. Used for creatures that are flat or have flat parts. *:Examples: ''

Platyhelminthes The flatworms, flat worms, Platyhelminthes, or platyhelminths (from the Greek language, Greek πλατύ, ''platy'', meaning "flat" and ἕλμινς (root: ἑλμινθ-), ''helminth-'', meaning "worm") are a Phylum (biology), phylum of relati ...

'' ("flat worm"); ''

Platybelodon ''Platybelodon'' ("flat-spear tusk") is an extinct genus of large herbivorous proboscidean mammals related to modern-day elephants. Species lived during the middle Miocene Epoch in Africa, Asia and the Caucasus. Palaeobiology ''Platybelodon'' wa ...

'' ("flat spear-tusk"); ''

Platycodon ''Platycodon grandiflorus'' (from Ancient Greek "wide" and "bell") is a species of herbaceous flowering perennial plant of the family (biology), family Campanulaceae, and the only member of the genus ''Platycodon''. It is native plant, native ...

'' ("flat bell");

platypus The platypus (''Ornithorhynchus anatinus''), sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus, is a semiaquatic, egg-laying mammal Endemic (ecology), endemic to Eastern states of Australia, eastern Australia, including Tasmania. The platypu ...

("flat foot) *plesio-, plesi-: ''Pronunciation'': /pliːziːoʊ/, /pliːz/ (or pliːʒ/). ''Origin'': Ancient Greek πλησίον (''plēsíon''). ''Meaning'': near. Used for species that bear similarities to other species. *:Examples: ''

Plesiosaurus ''Plesiosaurus'' (Greek: ' ('), near to + ' ('), lizard) is a genus of extinct, large marine sauropterygian reptile that lived during the Early Jurassic. It is known by nearly complete skeletons from the Lias Group, Lias of England. It is disting ...

'' ("near lizard"); ''

Plesiorycteropus ''Plesiorycteropus'', also known as the bibymalagasy or Malagasy aardvark, is a recently extinct eutherian mammalian genus from Madagascar. Upon its description in 1895, it was classified with the aardvark, but more recent molecular evidence ins ...

'' ("near

aardvark The aardvark ( ; ''Orycteropus afer'') is a medium-sized, burrowing, nocturnal mammal native to Africa. It is the only living species of the order Tubulidentata, although other prehistoric species and genera of Tubulidentata are known. Unlike ...

"); ''

Plesiobaena ''Plesiobaena'' is an extinct genus of turtle which existed in the Belly River Formation, Canada during the late Cretaceous period (Campanian age). It was first named by Lawrence Lambe Lawrence Morris Lambe (August 27, 1863 – March 12, 1919) ...

'' ("near ''Baena''"); ''

Plesiadapis ''Plesiadapis'' is one of the oldest known primate-like mammal genera which existed about 58–55 million years ago in North America and Europe. ''Plesiadapis'' means "near-Adapis", which is a reference to the adapiform primate of the Eocene pe ...

'' ("near ''

Adapis ''Adapis'' is an extinct adapiform primate from the Eocene of Europe. While this genus has traditionally contained five species (''A. magnus, A. bruni, A. collinsonae, A. parisiensis,'' and ''A. sudrei''), recent research has recognized at least ...

''") *-pod, podo-, -pus: ''Pronunciation'': /pɒd/, /pɒdoʊ/, /pʊs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek πούς, ποδός (''poús, podós''). ''Meaning'': foot, of the foot, respectively. *:Examples:

Ornithopod Ornithopoda () is a clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, called ornithopods (), that started out as small, bipedal running grazers and grew in size and numbers until they became one of the most successful groups of herbivores in the Cretaceous world ...

("bird foot"); ''

Brachypodosaurus ''Brachypodosaurus'' (meaning "short-footed lizard") is a dubious genus of dinosaur, possibly an ornithischian, from the Late Cretaceous Lameta Formation (Maastrichtian) in India. The only remains discovered so far for this animal consist of a ...

'' ("short footed lizard"); ''

Moropus ''Moropus'' (meaning "slow foot") is an extinct genus of large perissodactyl ("odd-toed" ungulate) mammal in the chalicothere family. They were endemic to North America during the Miocene from ~20.4—13.6 Mya, existing for approximately . ...

'' ("slow foot") *pro-, protero-: ''pronunciation:'' /proʊ̯/, /proʊ̯tεroʊ̯/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek πρό, πρότερος (''pró, próteros''). Meaning: before. Usually used for ancestral forms. *:Examples:''

Proterosuchus ''Proterosuchus'' is an extinct genus of archosauriform reptiles that lived during the Early Triassic. It contains three valid species: the type species ''P. fergusi'' and the referred species ''P. alexanderi'' and ''P. goweri''. All three spec ...

'' ("before crocodile"); ''

Procompsognathus ''Procompsognathus'' is an extinct genus of coelophysid theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 210 million years ago during the later part of the Triassic Period, in what is now Germany. ''Procompsognathus'' was a small-sized, lightly built, ...

'' ("before elegant jaw"); ''

Prosaurolophus ''Prosaurolophus'' (; meaning "before ''Saurolophus''", in comparison to the later dinosaur with a similar head crest) is a genus of hadrosaurid (or duck-billed) dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of North America. It is known from the remains of ...

'' ("before lizard crest") *proto-: ''Pronunciation'': /proʊtoʊ/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek πρῶτος (''prōtos''). Meaning: first. Used for early appearances in the fossil record. *:Examples: ''

Protoceratops ''Protoceratops'' (; ) is a genus of small protoceratopsid dinosaurs that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous, around 75 to 71 million years ago. The genus ''Protoceratops'' includes two species: ''P. andrewsi'' and the larger ''P. hellenik ...

'' ("first horned face"); ''

Protognathosaurus ''Protognathosaurus'' (meaning "early jaw lizard") is a genus of herbivorous dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic. It was a sauropod found at Dashanpu in Sichuan in what is present-day China. In 1988 Zhang Yihun named and described the type spec ...

'' ("first jaw lizard"); ''

Protohadros ''Protohadros'' (meaning "first hadrosaur") is a genus of herbivorous ornithischian dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous ( Cenomanian stage). Gary Byrd, a part-time palaeontologist, discovered some remains of this euornithopod (ribs and an ungual) ...

'' ("first

hadrosaur Hadrosaurids (), or duck-billed dinosaurs, are members of the ornithischian family Hadrosauridae. This group is known as the duck-billed dinosaurs for the flat duck-bill appearance of the bones in their snouts. The ornithopod family, which includ ...

") *psittaco-, -psitta: ''Pronunciation'': /sitɑːkoʊ/, /psitə/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek ψιττακός (''psittakós''). ''Meaning'': parrot. "Psittaco-" is used for parrot-like creatures, while the suffix "psitta" is used for parrots. *:Examples: ''

Psittacosaurus ''Psittacosaurus'' ( ; "parrot lizard") is a genus of extinct ceratopsian dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of what is now Asia, existing between 126 and 101 million years ago. It is notable for being the most species-rich non-avian dinosaur gen ...

'' ("parrot lizard"); ''

Cyclopsitta ''Cyclopsitta'' is a genus of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It contains two species: The genus name ''Cyclopsitta'' is a combination of the Greek name of the mythical Cyclops (a race of one-eyed Sicilian giants, whose name is a combinat ...

'' ("

Cyclops In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...

parrot"); ''

Xenopsitta ''Xenopsitta'' is a prehistoric parrot genus known from a fossil tarsometatarsus in early Miocene deposits at Merkur, in western Bohemia of the Czech Republic, and described by Jiri Mlikovsky in 1998. The type species is ''Xenopsitta fejfari''. ...

'' ("strange parrot"). *pter-, ptero-, -pterus, pteryg-, -ptera, -pteryx. Pronunciation: /ter/, /teroʊ/, /pterəs/, /terɪg/, /pterɪx/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek πτέρυξ, πτέρυγος (''pterux, ptérugos''). ''Meaning:'' wing, of a wing, respectively. Used for many winged creatures, but also expanded to mean "fin", and used for many undersea

arthropods Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...

. The suffix "-ptera" is also used in orders of winged insects. *:Examples: ''

'' ("toothless wing"); ''

'' ("winged finger"); ''

Eurypterus ''Eurypterus'' ( ) is an extinct genus of eurypterid, a group of organisms commonly called "sea scorpions". The genus lived during the Silurian period, from around 432 to 418 million years ago. ''Eurypterus'' is by far the most well-studied and ...

'' ("wide wing" or fin); ''

Pterygotus ''Pterygotus'' is a genus of giant predatory eurypterid, a group of extinct aquatic arthropods. Fossils of ''Pterygotus'' have been discovered in deposits ranging in age from Middle Silurian to Late Devonian, and have been referred to several di ...

'' ("winged" or finned);

Coleoptera Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

("sheathed wing"); ''

'' ("ancient wing"); ''

Stenopterygius ''Stenopterygius'' is an extinct genus of thunnosaur ichthyosaur known from Europe (England, France, Germany, Luxembourg and Switzerland). This genus of ichthyosaur was about long and weighed .Huene F. von 1939. Ein ganzes Ichthyosaurier-Skelett ...

'' ("narrow finned") *-pus: see #pod, -pod, -podo-, -pus. *-raptor, raptor-: ''Pronunciation'': /ræptər/. ''Origin'': Latin raptor. ''Meaning'': "robber, thief". Frequently used for dromeosaurid, dromaeosaurids or similar animals. The term "raptor" by itself may also be used for a dromeosaurid, a ''Velociraptor'', or originally, a bird of prey. *:Examples: ''Velociraptor'' ("swift robber"); ''Utahraptor'' ("Utah robber"); ''Raptorex'' ("thief king") *-rex: Pronunciation: /rεks/. ''Origin'': Latin rex. ''Meaning'': king. Often used for large or impressive animals. *:Examples: ''Raptorex'' ("thief king"); ''Dracorex'' ("dragon king"); ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' ("tyrant lizard king") * -rhina, rhino-, -rhinus: ''Pronunciation'': /raɪnə/ /raɪnoʊ̯/, /raɪnəs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek ῥίς (''rhís''). ''Meaning'': nose. *:Examples: ''Altirhinus'' ("high nose"); ''Pachyrhinosaurus'' ("thick-nosed lizard"); ''Lycorhinus'' ("wolf nose"); ''Arrhinoceratops'' ("noseless horned face"); ''Cretoxyrhina'' ("Cretaceous sharp nose");

("nose horn") * rhodo-: ''Pronunciation'': /roʊdoʊ/, /rodoʊ/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek ῥόδον (''rhódon''). ''Meaning'': "rose". Used for red-colored or otherwise rose-like organisms. *:Examples: ''Rhododendron'' ("rose tree"); ''Red algae, Rhodophyta'' ("rose plant"); ''Rhodomonas'' ("rose unit") *rhynco-, -rhynchus: ''Pronunciation'': /rɪnkoʊ/, /rɪnkəs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek ῥύγχος (''rhúgkhos''). ''Meaning'': "beak", "snout". *:Examples: ''Rhamphorhynchus'' ("prow beak"); ''Aspidorhynchus'' ( "shield snout"); ''Ornithorhynchus'' ("bird beak"); ''rhynchosaur'' ("beaked lizard") *sarco-: Pronunciation: /sɑːrkʊ/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek σάρξ (''sárx''). ''Meaning'': flesh. Used for flesh-eating animals or animals and plants with fleshy parts *:Examples: ''

'' ("flesh-loving"); Sarcopterygii ("fleshy fin"); ''Sarcosuchus'' ("flesh crocodile") *saur, sauro-, -saurus: Pronunciation: /sɔər/, /sɔəroʊ/, /sɔərəs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek ('). ''Meaning'': lizard. Used for dinosaurs and other extinct reptiles. *:Examples: Dinosaur ("terrible lizard") Mososaur, Mosasaur ("Meuse lizard"), ''Tyrannosaurus'' ("tyrant lizard"), ''Allosaurus'' ("different lizard"), ''Sauroposeidon'' ("Poseidon lizard") *sino-: ''Pronunciation''; /saɪnoʊ̯/. ''Origin'': la, Sina. ''Meaning'': from China. Used for ancient and other civilizations. *:Examples: ''Sinornithosaurus''; ("Chinese bird-lizard"); ''Sinosauropteryx'' ("Chinese lizard wing"); ''Sinoceratops'' ("Chinese horned face") *smilo-, -smilus: ''Pronunciation'': /smaɪloʊ/, /smaɪləs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek σμίλη ('). ''Meaning'': a carving knife or chisel. Used for animals with sabre teeth. *:Examples: ''Smilodon'' ("knife tooth"); ''Smilosuchus'' ("knife crocodile"); ''Thylacosmilus'' ("pouched knife"); ''Xenosmilus'' ("strange knife") *-spondylus: Pronunciation: /spɒndələs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek σπόνδυλος ('). ''Meaning'': vertebra. *:Examples: ''

'' ("backwards vertebra"); ''Massospondylus'' ("longer vertebra"); ''Bothriospondylus'' ("excavated vertebra") *squali-, squalo-: Pronunciation: /skweɪlɪ/, /skweɪloʊ/ . ''Origin'': Latin squalus. ''Meaning'': a kind of sea fish. Used for shark like creatures. *:Examples: ''Squalodon'' ("shark tooth") ''

'' ("shark form"); ''Squalicorax'' ("shark raven") ''Squalomorphii'' ("shark shape") *stego-, -stega: ''Pronunciation'': /stɛgoʊ/, /stɛgə/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek στέγη ('). ''Meaning'': roof. Used for armoured or plated animals. *:Examples: ''Stegosaurus'' ("roofed lizard"); ''

'' ("roofed fish"); ''

'' ("spine roof") *strepto-: ''Pronunciation'': /streptoʊ/, /strepto/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek στρεπτός ('). ''Meaning'': twisted, bent. *:Examples: Streptophyta ("bent plant"); ''Streptococcus'' ("twisted granule"); ''

'' ("twisted vertebra") *-stoma, -stome, -stomus: ''Pronunciation'': /stoʊma/, /stoʊm/, /stoʊməs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek στόμα (''stóma''). ''Meaning'': mouth. *:Examples: deuterostome (second mouth); ''

'' ("jaw mouth") ''Anastomus'' ("on mouth") *sucho-, -suchus: ''Pronunciation'': /sjuːkoʊ/, /sjuːkəs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek σοῦχος (''soûkhos''). ''Meaning:'': Originally the Ancient Greek name for the Ancient Egyptian crocodile-headed god, Sobek. Used to denote crocodilians or crocodile-like animals. *:Examples: ''

'' ("terrible crocodile") ''Anatosuchus'' ("duck crocodile"), ''Suchomimus'' ("crocodile mimic") *tauro-: /taərəs/. Origin: la, taurus. ''Meaning'': bull. *:Examples: ''Taurotragus'' ("male goat-bull"); ''Taurovenator'' ("bull hunter"); ''Carnotaurus'' ("flesh bull") *-teuthis: ''Pronunciation'': /tjuːθɪs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek τευθίς (''teuthís''). ''Meaning:'' squid. Used for squids and similar cephalopods. *:Examples: ''Gonioteuthis'' ("narrow squid") '' Architeuthis'' ("ruling squid") ''Vampyroteuthis'' ("vampire squid"); ''Cylindroteuthis'' ("cylindrical squid") *thero-, -therium. ''Pronunciation'': /θɛroʊ/, /θiːrɪəm/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek θήρ (''thḗr''). ''Meaning'': beast. Used for supposedly monstrous animals. The suffix "-therium" is often used to denote extinct mammals. *:Examples: theropod ("beast foot"), ''Deinotherium'' ("terrible beast") ''Megatherium'' ("big beast") ''

'' ("thunder beast"); ''Uintatherium'' ("beast of the Uinta mountains") *thylac-: ''Pronunciation'': /θaɪlæk/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek θύλακος (''thúlakos''). ''Meaning'': a sack. In the sense of "pouch", used for marsupials. *:Examples: Thylacine ("pouched one"); ''Thylacoleo'' ("pouched lion"); ''Thylacosmilus'' ("pouched knife") *tri-: ''Pronunciation'': /traɪ/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek τρία (''tría''). ''Meaning'': three. *:Examples: ''

'' ("three-horned face"); ''Triconodon'' ("three coned teeth"); trilobite ("three lobes") *titano-, -titan: ''Pronunciation'': /taɪtænoʊ/, /taɪtən/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek Τιτάν, Τιτᾶνος (''Titán'', ''Titânos''). ''Meaning'': Titan (mythology), Titan, of the Titan, respectively. Used for large animals. *:Examples: ''Titanosaurus'' ("Titan lizard"); ''Giraffatitan'' ("giraffe Titan"); ''Anatotitan'' ("duck Titan"); ''Titanotherium'' ("Titan beast"); ''Titanoboa'' ("Titanic boa") *tyranno-, -tyrannus: ''Pronunciation'': /taɪrænoʊ/, /taɪrænəs/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek τύραννος (''túrannos''). ''Meaning'': tyrant. Used for animals similar to ''Tyrannosaurus''. *:Examples: ''Zhuchengtyrannus'' ("Zhucheng tyrant"); ''Tyrannosaurus'' ("tyrant lizard"); ''Nanotyrannus'' ("dwarf tyrant"); ''Tyrannotitan'' ("Titanic tyrant"); ''Sinotyrannus'' ("Chinese tyrant"); ''Suskityrannus'' ("coyote tyrant") *-urus, -uro-: ''Pronunciation'': /uːrəs/, /uːroʊ/. ''Origin'': grc, οὐρά (''ourá''). ''Meaning'': tail. *:Examples: ''Quoll, Dasyurus'' ("hairy tail"); Coelurosauria ("hollow tail lizards"); ''Uromastyx'' ("tail scourge") *veloci-: ''Pronunciation'': /vəlɑsɪ/. ''Origin'': Latin ''velox''. ''Meaning'': speed. *:Example: ''Velociraptor'' ("quick thief"); ''Velocisaurus'' ("swift lizard") *-venator: ''Pronunciation'': /vɛnətər/. ''Origin'': Latin ''venator''. ''Meaning'': hunter. *:Examples: ''Afrovenator'' ("African hunter"); ''Juravenator'' ("Jura Mountains, Jura hunter"); ''Scorpiovenator'' ("scorpion hunter"); ''Neovenator'' ("new hunter"); ''Concavenator'' ("Province of Cuenca, Cuenca hunter") *xeno-: ''Pronunciation'': /zinoʊ/. Origin: Ancient Greek ξένος (''xénos''). ''Meaning'': strange, stranger. Used for organisms that exhibit unusual traits for their class. *:Examples: ''Xenosmilus'' ("strange knife"); ''Xenotarsosaurus'' ("strange ankled lizard"); ''

'' ("strange parrot"); ''Xenocyon'' ("strange dog"); ''Xenokeryx'' ("strange horn"); ''Xenostega'' ("strange roof"); ''Xenohyla'' ("strange hynadae"); ''Xenozancla'' ("strange animal"); ''Xenodermus'' ("strange skin") *-zoon, -zoa: ''Pronunciation'': /zoʊɑːn/, /zoʊə/. ''Origin'': Ancient Greek ζῷον (''zōion''). ''Meaning'': animal. Used for broad categories of animals, or in certain names of animals. *:Examples: Metazoa ("encompassing animals"); Parazoa ("near animals"); Ecdysozoa ("moulting animals"); ''Yunnanozoon'' ("animal from Yunnan"); ''Yuyuanozoon'' ("animal from Yu Yuan")

See also