Definitions for: Tussock


[n] a bunch of hair or feathers or growing grass



Webster (1913) Definition: Tus"sock, n. [From Tuz.] [Written also tussuck.]
1. A tuft, as of grass, twigs, hair, or the like; especially,
a dense tuft or bunch of grass or sedge.

Such laying of the hair in tussocks and tufts.
--Latimer.

2. (Bot.) Same as Tussock grass, below.

3. (Zo["o]l.) A caterpillar of any one of numerous species of
bombycid moths. The body of these caterpillars is covered
with hairs which form long tufts or brushes. Some species
are very injurious to shade and fruit trees. Called also
tussock caterpillar. See Orgyia.

Tussock grass. (Bot.)
(a) A tall, strong grass of the genus Dactylis ({D.
c[ae]spitosa}), valuable for fodder, introduced into
Scotland from the Falkland Islands.
(b) A tufted grass (Aira c[ae]spitosa).
(c) Any kind of sedge (Carex) which forms dense tufts in
a wet meadow or boggy place.

Tussock moth (Zo["o]l.), the imago of any tussock
caterpillar. They belong to Orgyia, Halecidota, and
allied genera.

Synonyms: tuft

See Also: bunch, clump, cluster, clustering, hexenbesen, staghead, wisp, witch broom, witches' broom

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