pleuston

[ploo-stuhn, -ston]

pleus·ton

[ploo-stuhn, -ston]
noun Biology.
a buoyant mat of weeds, algae, and associated organisms that floats on or near the surface of a lake, river, or other body of fresh water.

Origin:
1940–45; pleus- (< Greek pleûs(is) sailing, or pleus- aorist stem of pleîn to sail, go by sea) + -ton, on the model of nekton, plankton

pleus·ton·ic [ploo-ston-ik] , adjective
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Pleuston is always a great word to know.
So is adaptation. Does it mean:
any alteration in the structure of an organism resulting from natural selection, by which the organism becomes more able to survive in its environment
having no sexual organs; independent of sexual processes; not involving the union of male and female germ cells
Collins
World English Dictionary
pleuston (ˈpluːstən, -stɒn)
 
n
a mass of small organisms, esp algae, floating at the surface of shallow pools
 
[C20: from Greek pleusis sailing, from plein to sail; for form, compare plankton]

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