A small bone located on the outside of the pterygoid bone in the roof of the mouth, found in some fish and reptiles.
From Greek 'ektos' (outside) and 'pterygoid' (relating to the wing-shaped pterygoid bone), literally meaning 'outside the pterygoid.' Used in comparative anatomy since the 1800s.
This bone is a 'fossil' in modern animals—it's a leftover from our fish ancestors and shows up in some reptiles but disappears entirely in mammals like us, making it a living record of evolution!
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