Skip to main content

    Caudatus

    /kaw-DAH-tus/
    🏷️ Taxonomy●● Intermediate

    Also known as: caudata, caudatum

    A morphological epithet describing a plant or plant part that has a long, narrow, tail-like extension — either a leaf that tapers into a long drip-tip, a seed with a long appendage, or a petal with a trailing tail-like tip. Appears as caudatus (masculine), caudata (feminine), or caudatum (neuter).

    Etymology

    From Latin caudatus, meaning "having a tail," from cauda (a tail).

    Example

    Amaranthus caudatus (love-lies-bleeding) has the drooping, rope-like, tail-like flower spikes that give it both its epithet and its evocative common name.

    Related Terms