| vacuole |
a small cavity in the cytoplasm of a cell, bound by a single membrane and containing water, food, or metabolic waste. |
|
| vascular system |
(of plants) System of cells and
tissues for the uptake and transport of fluids
and dissolved nutrients within a plant (the
plumbing); non-vascular plants have to live
in moist places because they do not have a
well-developed system for the internal
transport of fluids |
|
| vector |
an organism responsible for the spread of disease |
|
| vein |
(1) In geology: small, dyke-like intrusive body;
(2) in zoology: blood vessel carrying
blood towards the heart;
(3) in botany: vascular system in leaves |
|
| veld |
An Afrikaans term for field, generally used in South Africa to describe habitats in which grasses are a dominant element; equivalent to savanna. |
|
| venison |
game meat |
|
| ventral |
The underside, lower surface of an animal, opposite of dorsal. |
|
| vermeersiekte (expand sickness) |
a disease causing vomiting due to the paralysis of the oesophagus |
|
| vermiculite |
Silicate mineral that readily breaks
into flat sheets (micaceous) that greatly expand
on heating; used in horticulture and insulation |
|
| vertebrate |
An animal with a spinal column and skeleton of bone, including amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. |
|
| vestigial |
without any discernible function |
|
| vibrassae |
whiskers, highly sensitive tactile outgrowths of stiffened hair often from around the animals muzzle, but elsewhere also |
|
| virulence |
the degree to which severe disease is induced in a host |
|
| viscera |
Internal organs that lie in the coelomic cavities of animals, i.e. in the thoracic and abdominal cavities of mammals. |
|
| visceral |
Pertaining to the Viscera. See definition of Viscera. |
|
| viviparous |
an animal whose young are born alive and not from an egg |
|
| vlei |
a low-lying flat area that tends to be marshy. Often a flood-plain with few large plants, mostly grasses |
|
| volcanic ash |
Dust-sized particles of lava released
from volcanoes during eruptions |
|
| vomeronasal organ |
(see Jacobson's organ). A pair of narrow, blind sacs situated on either side of the nasal septum, lined with sensory cells,primarily dedicated to monitoring reproductive condition, of females urine. |
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