See Also: oestrus(medicine)
oestrus(dictionary)

oestrus (iou)



oestrus noun. Also *estrus. L17.
[Latin from Greek oistros gadfly, breeze, sting, frenzy.]
A parasitic insect; now spec. a biting fly of the genus Oestrus or the family Oestridae whose larvae are parasitic on various animals; a botfly. Now chiefly as mod. Latin genus name. L17.
fig. A sharp stimulus; (a) passion, (a) frenzy. Now rare. E19.
E. FitzGerald The Impetus, the Lyrical oestrus, is gone.
Zoology & Physiology. (The period of) a female animal's readiness to mate, accompanied by certain physiological changes; the rut, heat. L19.