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bunodont
[ byoo-nuh-dont ]
adjective
- having molar teeth with crowns in the form of rounded or conical cusps.
bunodont
/ ˈbjuːnəˌdɒnt /
adjective
- (of the teeth of certain mammals) having cusps that are separate and rounded
Word History and Origins
Origin of bunodont1
Example Sentences
Bunodont, bū′nō-dont, adj. having tuberculate molars—opp. to Lophodont.
In the existing members of the group the cheek-teeth approximate to the bunodont type, although showing signs of being degenerate modifications of the selenodont modification.
This is the more remarkable seeing that Elotherium may be regarded as a kind of bunodont Anthracotherium.
Finally, we have in the Pliocene of India the genus Tetraconodon, remarkable for the enormous size attained by the bluntly conical premolars; as the molars are purely bunodont, this genus seems to be a late and specialized survivor of a primitive type.
It is noteworthy, however, that in some instances there appears to have been a retrograde modification from the selenodont towards the bunodont type, the hippopotamus being a case in point.
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