diapause

[ dahy-uh-pawz ]

noun

1. a period of hormonally controlled quiescence, especially in immature insects, characterized by cessation of growth and reduction of metabolic activity, often occurring seasonally or when environmental conditions are unfavorable.

verb (used without object)

, di·a·paused, di·a·paus·ing.

1. to undergo diapause.

diapause

/ ˈdaɪəˌpɔːz /

noun

1. a period of suspended development and growth accompanied by decreased metabolism in insects and some other animals. It is correlated with seasonal changes

Word History and Origins

Origin of diapause¹

1890–95; < Greek diápausis; dia-, pause

Word History and Origins

Origin of diapause¹

C19: from Greek diapausis pause, from diapauein to pause, bring to an end, from dia- + pauein to stop

Example Sentences

The insects in these urban spaces fly for longer into the fall than the same species in rural areas, and take longer to induce diapause, which is when they pause development and reduce feeding to survive the winter.

From Popular-Science

The data showed that the two species studied were typically flying days to weeks into the fall before inducing diapause in urban areas than in rural areas.

From Popular-Science

This enabled them to observe whether the offspring in the labs were exhibiting differences in their diapause induction time depending on where their insect parent was collected.

From Popular-Science

These researchers expect that these traits are not only heritable, but adaptive, as these insects inducing diapause later might be able to have an extra generation of offspring in the fall.

From Popular-Science