coccolith

English

Etymology

Derived from coccolithophore; surface analysis is from Ancient Greek κόκκος (kókkos, “grain, seed”) and λίθος (líthos, “stone”), due to the shape of the organism's exoskeleton.

Noun

coccolith (plural coccoliths)

  1. (biology) A microscopic skeletal plate of calcite on the surface of certain marine phytoplankton; it forms chalk and limestone when fossilized
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