Hypertext Webster Gateway: "aftershaft"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Aftershaft \Aft"er*shaft`\, n. (Zo["o]l.)
The hypoptilum.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Hypoptilum \Hy*pop"ti*lum\, n.; pl. L. {Hypoptila}, E.
{Hypoptilums}. [NL., fr. Gr. "ypo` beneath + ? down.]
(Zo["o]l.)
An accessory plume arising from the posterior side of the
stem of the contour feathers of many birds; -- called also
{aftershaft}. See Illust. of {Feather}.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
aftershaft
n : a supplementary feather (usually small) on the underside of
the base of the shaft of some feathers in some birds
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