Plural form of asteriscus; multiple star-shaped otoliths or ear bones found in fish.
From asteriscus plus -es plural ending. This is a regular English pluralization of the Latin scientific term.
The plural 'asteriscuses' sounds funny but it's scientifically precise—ichthyologists (fish scientists) carefully extract and study these three tiny bones from each fish's head to learn about species and growth patterns, and the asteriscus is the smallest of the trio.
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