Word Study
altricial
CIDE DICTIONARY
altricial, adj.
born naked and blind and dependent on parents for food; -- of hatchlings. Opposite of precocial . [WordNet 1.5]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
altricial, adj. & n.
--adj. (of a bird) whose young require care and feeding by the parents after hatching.
--n. an altricial bird (cf. PRAECOCIAL).
--adj. (of a bird) whose young require care and feeding by the parents after hatching.
--n. an altricial bird (cf. PRAECOCIAL).
Etymology
L altrix altricis (fem.) nourisher f. altor f. alere altus nourish
For further exploring for "altricial" in Webster Dictionary Online