Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) verdigris vûrˈdəgrēsˌ [key], one of three copper acetates: blue verdigris, Cu(CH3COO)2·CuO·6H2O; green verdigris, 2Cu(CH3COO)2·CuO·6H2O; or neutral verdigris, Cu(CH3COO)2·H2O; or a mixture o...

(Encyclopedia) German shepherd, breed of large, muscular working dog perfected in Germany at the turn of the 20th cent. It stands about 25 in. (64 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs from 60 to 85 lb (27.2–38.5 kg...

(Encyclopedia) glass snake, common name for the snakelike legless lizards of the genus Ophisaurus found in the S and central United States and in Eurasia. The shiny, scaled body is gray or greenish brown, sometimes ...

(Encyclopedia) leopard, large carnivore of the cat family, Panthera pardus, widely distributed in Africa and Asia. It is commonly yellow, buff, or gray, patterned with black spots and rings. The rings, unlike those ...

(Encyclopedia) mongoose, name for a large number of small, carnivorous, terrestrial Old World mammals of the civet family. They are found in S Asia and in Africa, with one species extending into S Spain. Mongooses a...

(Encyclopedia) tin, metallic chemical element; symbol Sn [Lat. stannum]; at. no. 50; at. wt. 118.710; m.p. 231.9681℃; b.p. 2,270℃; sp. gr. 5.75 (gray), 7.3 (white); valence +2 or +4. Tin exhibits allotropy; abov...

(Encyclopedia) chalcedony kălsĕdˈənē [key] [from Chalcedon], form of quartz the crystals of which are so minute that its crystalline structure cannot be seen except with the aid of a microscope. Chalcedony has ...

(Encyclopedia) mildew, name for certain fungi and protists, for the diseases they cause in various crops, and for the discoloration (and sometimes the weakening and disintegration) they cause in such materials as le...

(Encyclopedia) partridge, common name applied to various henlike birds of several families. The true partridges of the Old World are members of the pheasant family (Phasianidae); the common European or Hungarian spe...

(Encyclopedia) nutcracker, common name for a small crow of the genus Nucifraga in the family Corvidae (crow family). The Old World nutcracker (N. caryocatactes) is found throughout the colder regions of Europe, incl...