Neotenous

noun (Zoology)

• the retention of juvenile features in the adult animal. Also called pedomorphosis.

the sexual maturity of an animal while it is still in a mainly larval state, as in the axolotl. Also called pedogenesis.

DERIVATIVES

neotenic | ˌnēōˈtenik, -ˈtēnik | adjective

neotenous | nēˈätn-əs | adjective

[Close to the Machine — Ellen Ullman]