types:
being,
organism
a living thing that has (or can develop) the ability to act or function independently
life
living things collectively
biont
a discrete unit of living matter
cell
(biology) the basic structural and functional unit of all organisms; they may exist as independent units of life (as in monads) or may form colonies or tissues as in higher plants and animals
benthos
organisms (plants and animals) that live at or near the bottom of a sea
dwarf
a plant or animal that is atypically small
parent
an organism (plant or animal) from which younger ones are obtained
native
indigenous plants and animals
recombinant
a cell or organism in which genetic recombination has occurred
conspecific
an organism belonging to the same species as another organism
carrier
(genetics) an organism that possesses a recessive gene whose effect is masked by a dominant allele; the associated trait is not apparent but can be passed on to offspring
denizen
a plant or animal naturalized in a region
amphidiploid
(genetics) an organism or cell having a diploid set of chromosomes from each parent
diploid
(genetics) an organism or cell having the normal amount of DNA per cell; i.e., two sets of chromosomes or twice the haploid number
haploid
(genetics) an organism or cell having only one complete set of chromosomes
heteroploid
(genetics) an organism or cell having a chromosome number that is not an even multiple of the haploid chromosome number for that species
polyploid
(genetics) an organism or cell having more than twice the haploid number of chromosomes
aerobe
an organism (especially a bacterium) that requires air or free oxygen for life
anaerobe
an organism (especially a bacterium) that does not require air or free oxygen to live
cross,
crossbreed,
hybrid
(genetics) an organism that is the offspring of genetically dissimilar parents or stock; especially offspring produced by breeding plants or animals of different varieties or breeds or species
polymorph
an organism that can assume more than one adult form as in the castes of ants or termites
plankton
the aggregate of small plant and animal organisms that float or drift in great numbers in fresh or salt water
nekton
the aggregate of actively swimming animals in a body of water ranging from microscopic organisms to whales
parasite
an animal or plant that lives in or on a host (another animal or plant); it obtains nourishment from the host without benefiting or killing the host
host
an animal or plant that nourishes and supports a parasite; it does not benefit and is often harmed by the association
commensal
either of two different animal or plant species living in close association but not interdependent
myrmecophile
an organism such as an insect that habitually shares the nest of a species of ant
eucaryote,
eukaryote
an organism with cells characteristic of all life forms except primitive microorganisms such as bacteria; i.e. an organism with `good' or membrane-bound nuclei in its cells
procaryote,
prokaryote
a unicellular organism having cells lacking membrane-bound nuclei; bacteria are the prime example but also included are blue-green algae and actinomycetes and mycoplasma
zooid
one of the distinct individuals forming a colonial animal such as a bryozoan or hydrozoan
blastomere
any cell resulting from cleavage of a fertilized egg
fiber,
fibre
any of several elongated, threadlike cells (especially a muscle fiber or a nerve fiber)
Kupffer's cell
specialized cells in the liver that destroy bacteria, foreign proteins, and worn-out blood cells
beta cell
a cell that produces insulin in the isles of Langerhans in the pancreas
somatic cell,
vegetative cell
any of the cells of a plant or animal except the reproductive cells; a cell that does not participate in the production of gametes
blastema
a mass of undifferentiated cells from which an organ or body part develops
fertilized ovum,
zygote
(genetics) the diploid cell resulting from the union of a haploid spermatozoon and ovum (including the organism that develops from that cell)
gametocyte
an immature animal or plant cell that develops into a gamete by meiosis
polar body
a small cell containing little cytoplasm that is produced along with the oocyte and later discarded
Sertoli cell,
Sertoli's cell
elongated cells found in the seminiferous tubules of the testis; apparently they nourish the spermatids
clon,
clone
a group of genetically identical cells or organisms derived from a single cell or individual by some kind of asexual reproduction
wildlife
all living things (except people) that are undomesticated
atavist,
throwback
an organism that has the characteristics of a more primitive type of that organism
mascot
a person or animal that is adopted by a team or other group as a symbolic figure
sitter
an organism (person or animal) that sits
stander
an organism (person or animal) that stands
plant cell
a cell that is a structural and functional unit of a plant
daughter cell
a cell formed by the division or budding of another cell
mother cell
cell from which another cell of an organism (usually of a different sort) develops
fungus
an organism of the kingdom Fungi lacking chlorophyll and feeding on organic matter; ranging from unicellular or multicellular organisms to spore-bearing syncytia
relict
an organism or species surviving as a remnant of an otherwise extinct flora or fauna in an environment much changed from that in which it originated
arthrospore
one of a string of thick walled vegetative resting cells formed by some algae and fungi
arthrospore
a body that resembles a spore but is not an endospore; produced by some bacteria
saprobe
an organism that lives in and derives its nourishment from organic matter in stagnant or foul water
katharobe
an organism that lives in an oxygenated medium lacking organic matter