elater

noun

1. Botany. an elastic filament serving to disperse spores.
2. Zoology. elaterid.
3. Obsolete. elasticity.

noun

1. an elaterid beetle
2. botany a spirally thickened filament, occurring in liverwort capsules and horsetails, thought to aid dispersal of spores

1. A tiny elongated structure that helps disperse plant spores by coiling and uncoiling in response to changes in humidity. The elaters of horsetails are bands attached to the spore wall, while those of liverworts are sterile cells occurring among the spores.