proventriculus

English

Etymology

From New Latin proventriculus (19th century), from pro- +‎ ventriculus.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɪkjʊləs

Noun

proventriculus (plural proventriculi)

1. (zoology) The part of the avian stomach, between the crop and the gizzard, that secretes digestive enzymes. [from 19th c.]
   • 2020, Tim Ecott, The Land of Maybe, Short Books, published 2021, page 201:

     In fulmars, the proventriculus is very baggy, and has thick wrinkled walls lined with glands that excrete the waxy oil which courting birds pass to one another in small amounts, perhaps as a way of scent-marking their mate.

2. (zoology) A similar part of the digestive system in insects and myriapods. [from 19th c.]

Related terms

• proventriculitis