whale shark

whale shark
Liver Liv"er, n. [AS. lifer; akin to D. liver, G. leber, OHG. lebara, Icel. lifr, Sw. lefver, and perh. to Gr. ? fat, E. live, v.] (Anat.) A very large glandular and vascular organ in the visceral cavity of all vertebrates. [1913 Webster]

Note: Most of the venous blood from the alimentary canal passes through it on its way back to the heart; and it secretes the bile, produces glycogen, and in other ways changes the blood which passes through it. In man it is situated immediately beneath the diaphragm and mainly on the right side. See {Bile}, {Digestive}, and {Glycogen}. The liver of invertebrate animals is usually made up of c[ae]cal tubes, and differs materially, in form and function, from that of vertebrates. [1913 Webster]

{Floating liver}. See {Wandering liver}, under {Wandering}.

{Liver of antimony}, {Liver of sulphur}. (Old Chem.) See {Hepar}.

{Liver brown}, {Liver color}, the color of liver, a dark, reddish brown.

{Liver shark} (Zo["o]l.), a very large shark ({Cetorhinus maximus}), inhabiting the northern coasts both of Europe and North America. It sometimes becomes forty feet in length, being one of the largest sharks known; but it has small simple teeth, and is not dangerous. It is captured for the sake of its liver, which often yields several barrels of oil. It has gill rakers, resembling whalebone, by means of which it separates small animals from the sea water. Called also {basking shark}, {bone shark}, {hoemother}, {homer}, and {sailfish}; it is sometimes referred to as {whale shark}, but that name is more commonly used for the {Rhincodon typus}, which grows even larger.

{Liver spots}, yellowish brown patches on the skin, or spots of chloasma. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Whale shark — Temporal range: 60–0 Ma …   Wikipedia

  • Whale shark — Whale Whale, n. [OE. whal, AS. hw[ae]l; akin to D. walvisch, G. wal, walfisch, OHG. wal, Icel. hvalr, Dan. & Sw. hval, hvalfisk. Cf. {Narwhal}, {Walrus}.] (Zo[ o]l.) Any aquatic mammal of the order {Cetacea}, especially any one of the large… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Whale shark — Shark Shark, n. [Of uncertain origin; perhaps through OF. fr. carcharus a kind of dogfish, Gr. karchari as, so called from its sharp teeth, fr. ka rcharos having sharp or jagged teeth; or perhaps named from its rapacity (cf. {Shark}, v. t. & i.); …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • whale shark — whale′ shark n. ich a tropical shark, Rhincodon typus, ranging in size from 30 to 60 ft. (9 to 18 m) and having small teeth and a sievelike structure over the gills for catching plankton • Etymology: 1880–85 …   From formal English to slang

  • whale shark — n. the only species (Rhiniodon typus) of a family (Rhiniodontidae, order Orectolobiformes) of huge, spotted, egg laying sharks that live in warm seas, have many small teeth, and feed on plankton and small fishes by means of gill strainers: the… …   English World dictionary

  • whale shark — noun large spotted shark of warm surface waters worldwide; resembles a whale and feeds chiefly on plankton • Syn: ↑Rhincodon typus • Hypernyms: ↑shark • Member Holonyms: ↑Rhincodon, ↑genus Rhincodon * * * noun …   Useful english dictionary

  • whale shark — a tropical shark, Rhincodon typus, ranging in size from 30 to 60 ft. (9 to 18 m), having small teeth and a sievelike structure over its gills for catching plankton. [1880 85] * * * Species (Rhincodon typus) of gigantic but harmless shark found… …   Universalium

  • whale shark — bangininis ryklys statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas rūšis atitikmenys: lot. Rhincodon typus angl. basking shark; whale shark rus. китовая акула; китообразная акула ryšiai: platesnis terminas – bangininiai rykliai …   Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

  • whale shark — noun A very large spotted shark, Rhincodon typus, of warm marine waters, similar to a whale, that feeds by filtering plankton from the water …   Wiktionary

  • whale shark — noun Date: circa 1885 a shark (Rhincodon typus) of warm waters that has small teeth, feeds chiefly on plankton strained by its gill rakers, may sometimes attain a length of up to 60 feet (18.3 meters), and is the largest known fish …   New Collegiate Dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”