statocyst

English

Etymology

From stato- +‎ cyst.

Pronunciation
  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈstatə(ʊ)sɪst/

Noun

statocyst (plural statocysts)

  1. (zoology) An organ of balance found in some aquatic invertebrates, consisting of a sac-like structure containing a statolith and numerous innervated setae. Ancestral to vertebrate otolith (their organ of hearing and balance).[from 19th c.]
    • 2017, Danna Staaf, Squid Empire, ForeEdge, →ISBN, page 110:
      Despite their tiny size, statocysts encode significant information about an animal's buoyancy and swimming ability, as we know from studying statocyst variability among modern cephalopods.
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