leptocephalus

[ lep-tuh-sef-uh-luhs ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

, plural lep·to·ceph·a·li [lep-t, uh, -, sef, -, uh, -lahy].

a colorless, transparent, flattened larva, especially of certain eels and ocean fishes.

leptocephalus

/ ˌlɛptəʊˈsɛfələs /

the slender transparent oceanic larva of eels of the genus Anguilla that migrates from its hatching ground in the Caribbean to European freshwater habitats

From New Latin, dating back to 1760–70; lepto-, -cephalous

Teleostean fishes are generally bony, but the bones are represented by cartilages in Leptocephalus.

In H. leptocephalus the posterior nares are brought very far back by the meeting of the alisphenoids.

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