Having or showing a distinct difference between the back (dorsal) surface and the belly (ventral) surface, as most animals do.
From Latin dorsum (back) + ventrum (belly). Used in biology to describe bilateral animals with distinct upper and lower surfaces. The term became standard in 19th-century comparative anatomy.
Most animals are dorsiventral—you're different on top than on bottom because evolution specialized your back for protection and your belly for organs, making you naturally asymmetrical in function even if you look symmetrical!
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