peduncle

Noun

peduncle (plural peduncles)

1. The stalk supporting an inflorescence or a solitary flower/fruit.
2. A short stalk at the base of a reproductive structure of a non-flowering plant.
   • On fertilization, the archegonia form obyriform calyptrae that are distinctly narrowed at base to form a stalk or peduncle; this does not occur in other Hepaticae.1992, Rudolf M[athias] Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, Chicago, Ill.: Field Museum of Natural History, →ISBN, page 5
3. A bundle of neurons connecting different parts of the brain.
4. In arthropods, the base segments of an antenna or stalk-like structures such as the peduncles of some barnacles.
5. In vertebrates, the base of any relatively massive anatomical member connected to the body by a narrower section. Cf. caudal peduncle of fishes.
6. A stem attaching a mass of tissue (such as a polyp) to the body.
7. A collection of nerves in the appendage of an animal (such as the tip of a dolphin's tail).