different between pseudocopulation vs amplexus

English

Etymology

pseudo- +? copulation

Noun

pseudocopulation (countable and uncountable, plural pseudocopulations)

1. (biology) Any of various processes, amongst diverse animals, in which male gametes are passed from one individual to another without sexual union.
2. (biology) The process by which an insect (such as a bee) attempts to mate with a flower (such as an orchid) that mimics a female insect, and in doing so pollinates the plant.

English

Etymology

Latin amplexus (“embrace”)

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -?ks?s

Noun

amplexus (uncountable)

1. A form of pseudocopulation, found chiefly in amphibians and horseshoe crabs, in which a male grasps a female with his front legs as part of the mating process.
   • 2018, Ed Douglas, The Guardian, 29 March:

     In the middle, just below the surface, a male and a female were locked in amplexus, a coupling that can last for days as the male waits to fertilise the eggs when they are laid.

Related terms

• amplex

Translations

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /am?plek.sus/, [äm?p???ks??s?]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /am?plek.sus/, [?m?pl??zus]

Etymology 1

Perfect active participle of amplector (“surround; grasp”).

Participle

amplexus (feminine amplexa, neuter amplexum); first/second-declension participle

1. surrounded, encircled, entwined
2. embraced, clasped, grasped
3. esteemed
4. cherished

Declension

First/second-declension adjective.

Etymology 2

amplector +? -tus

Noun

amplexus m (genitive amplex?s); fourth declension

1. clasp, embrace
2. coil
3. circumference

Declension

Fourth-declension noun.

Descendants

• English: amplexus

References

• amplexus in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• amplexus in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• amplexus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré Latin-Français, Hachette