the hard bony flap covering the gill slits in fishes
b.
the bony plate in certain gastropods covering the opening of the shell when the body is withdrawn
2. botany
the covering of the spore-bearing capsule of a moss
3. biology
any other covering or lid in various organisms
Derived forms
opercular (oˈpercular) or operculate (əʊˈpɜːkjʊlɪt, -ˌleɪt) or operculated (əʊˈpɜːkjʊˌleɪtɪd)
adjective
Word origin
C18: via New Latin from Latin: lid, from operīre to cover
Examples of 'opercula' in a sentence
opercula
The presence of reticulate sexine, pseudopercula, pontopercula and/or opercula was observed.
Ana Carolina Mezzonato-Pires, Cláudia Barbieri Ferreira Mendonça, Vania Gonçalves-Esteves 2015, 'Pollen morphology of selected species of Passiflora L. (Passifloraceae) from the AtlanticForest', Acta Botânica Brasílicahttp://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0102-33062015000300391&lng=en&tlng=en. Retrieved from DOAJ CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode)
Identify the opercula and the gill openings.
Worrallo Whitney; Frederic Lucas; Harold Shinn; Mabel Smallwood A Guide for the Study of Animals (1911). Retrieved in 2019 from Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/)
Behavior changes were evaluated through swimming patterns, opercula and pectoral response, and rheological aggressivity.
Valbona Aliko, Enis Mehmeti, Mihallaq Qirjo, Caterina Faggio 2019, 'Drink and sleep like a fish: goldfish as a behavior model to study pharmaceuticaleffects in freshwater ecosystems', Journal of Biological Researchhttps://www.pagepressjournals.com/index.php/jbr/article/view/7939. Retrieved from DOAJ CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode)
Naticine species are confidently identifiable primarily by characters of their opercula.
LUCA PEDRIALI, ELIO ROBBA 2009, 'A REVISION OF THE PLIOCENE NATICIDS OF NORTHERN AND CENTRAL ITALY.III. THE SUBFAMILIESPOLINICEINAE AND SININAE', Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafiahttps://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/RIPS/article/view/6389. Retrieved from DOAJ CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode)
Watch the movements of the opercula and mouth, and determine what movements are concernedin breathing and their order.
Worrallo Whitney; Frederic Lucas; Harold Shinn; Mabel Smallwood A Guide for the Study of Animals (1911). Retrieved in 2019 from Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/)
Chemical analysis of opercula smoke revealed aromatic phenols, which act as fragrance stabilisers and produce a “medicinal” odour.
Bijayalakshmi Devi Nongmaithem, Peter Mouatt, Joshua Smith, David Rudd, Michael Russell,Caroline Sullivan, Kirsten Benkendorff 2017, 'Volatile and bioactive compounds in opercula from Muricidae molluscs supports theiruse in ceremonial incense and traditional medicines', Scientific Reportshttp://link.springer.com/article/10.1038/s41598-017-17551-3. Retrieved from DOAJ CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode)