acritarch
English
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ἄκριτος (ákritos, “doubtful, indistinguishable”) + -arch.
Noun
acritarch (plural acritarches)
- (paleontology, palynology) Any small, non-acid-soluble (i.e. non-carbonate, non-siliceous) organic fossil that cannot be classified.
- 2018, Mark Carnall, “Unidentifiable fossils: palaeontological problematica”, in The Guardian[1]:
- Acritarchs represent some of the earliest evidence of life on Earth.
Translations
small, unclassifiable organic fossil