plectognath
/ˈplɛktə(ɡ)naθ/Ichthyol.
noun
A fish of the order Tetraodontiformes (or Plectognathi), which comprises tropical marine teleosts having beaklike mouths in which the upper jaw is firmly attached to the cranium and skin that is either thick and leathery or consists of spines or plates.
- The order includes puffer fishes and filefishes..
adjective
Of or relating to this order.
Origin
Mid 19th century; earliest use found in Louis Agassiz (1807–1873), zoologist and geologist. From (i) scientific Latin Plectognathi, order name or its etymon (ii) French Plectognathes from ancient Greek πλεκτός plaited, twisted + γνάθος jaw.