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spermaceti
spermaceti Highly vascular tissue, filled with a mixture of fatty esters (oils) which solidify at about 32°C, produced by Physeteridae (sperm whales) and stored in the upper part of an enlarged snout. A full-grown sperm whale may carry one tonne of spermaceti. The function of spermaceti is not known with certainty, but since its density changes as it liquefies and solidifies it may permit heat loss from the body and help provide neutral buoyancy to the animal, and it may contribute to the production of the sounds by which the animal echo-locates.
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MICHAEL ALLABY. "spermaceti." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "spermaceti." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (February 13, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-spermaceti.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "spermaceti." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Retrieved February 13, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-spermaceti.html |
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spermaceti
spermaceti Highly vascular tissue, filled with a mixture of fatty esters (oils) which solidify at about 32°C, produced by sperm whales (Physeteridae) and stored in the upper part of an enlarged snout. A full-grown sperm whale may carry one tonne of spermaceti. The function of spermaceti is not known with certainty, but since its density changes as it liquefies and solidifies it may permit heat loss from the body and help provide neutral buoyancy to the animal, and it may contribute to the production of the sounds by which the animal echolocates.
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Cite this article
MICHAEL ALLABY. "spermaceti." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "spermaceti." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (February 13, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-spermaceti.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "spermaceti." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Retrieved February 13, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-spermaceti.html |
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spermaceti
spermaceti , solid waxy substance, white, odorless, and tasteless, separated from the oils obtained from the sperm whale (see sperm oil ) and other marine mammals. A mixture of esters of fatty acids, it is composed chiefly of cetyl palmitate. Spermaceti is insoluble in water and does not putrefy. It is used mostly in ointments and cosmetics and in fine candles and was widely employed formerly as the waterproofing medium for oilskins. |
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"spermaceti." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "spermaceti." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 13, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-spermace.html "spermaceti." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 13, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-spermace.html |
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spermaceti
spermaceti fatty substance obtained from the sperm whale. XV. — medL. spermacētī (so named from an erron. notion of the nature of the substance), f. sperma SPERM + cētī, g. of cētus — Gr. kêtos whale; attrib. in s. whale (XVII), shortened to sperm whale (XIX)
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T. F. HOAD. "spermaceti." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "spermaceti." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 13, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-spermaceti.html T. F. HOAD. "spermaceti." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 13, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-spermaceti.html |
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