Plural of byssus, referring to the multiple bundles of thread-like filaments produced by mussels and other bivalve mollusks.
Latin plural of 'byssus,' from Greek 'byssos' (fine flax). In biology, 'byssi' is the preferred Latin plural for describing multiple sets of the attachment threads in shellfish.
It's actually wild that we use Latin plurals in English science—so when a mussel makes multiple thread bundles, we don't say 'byssuses,' we say 'byssi,' which sounds like we're speaking to ancient Romans!
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