pronghorn

[ prawng-hawrn, prong- ]

noun

, plural prong·horns, (especially collectively) prong·horn.

1. a fleet, antelopelike ruminant, Antilocapra americana, of the plains of western North America: now greatly reduced in number and endangered in some areas.

pronghorn

/ ˈprɒŋˌhɔːn /

noun

1. a ruminant mammal, Antilocapra americana, inhabiting rocky deserts of North America and having small branched horns: family Antilocapridae Also calledAmerican antelope

Word History and Origins

Origin of pronghorn¹

First recorded in 1805–15; prong + horn

Example Sentences

"These results help us understand the evolutionary history of horns and antlers and could suggest that differences in other ruminant cranial appendages, like ossicones and pronghorns, are also elaborations on a shared ancestral cranial appendage."

From Science Daily

"Other drivers of global change viewed as threats to pronghorn -- including nonnative annual grass invasions, wildfire, roads and increased winter precipitation -- were not prominent drivers of long-term declines in pronghorn productivity," the scientists concluded.

From Science Daily

A new paper published in Global Ecology and Conversation makes that argument in the case of declining pronghorn productivity -- the number of juveniles per 100 females -- in Wyoming.

From Science Daily

Austin Breeding examining the burned carcass of a pronghorn in Miami.

From New York Times

The question of whether humans can build necessary solar infrastructure without harming nature is playing out in the grasslands of the American West, prime locations for solar farms and home to animals like pronghorn.

From New York Times