[ adj ] of birds and mammals; having constant and relatively high body temperature <adj.all>
Homoiothermal \Ho*moi`o*ther"mal\, Homoiothermic \Ho*moi`o*therm"ic\, a. [Gr. ? like + E. thermal.] (Physiol.) Maintaining a uniform body temperature, usually above the ambient temperature; h[ae]matothermal; homothermic; warm-blooded; -- applied to warm-bodied animals such as birds and mammals, because they maintain a nearly uniform temperature in spite of the great variations in the surrounding air; in distinct from the {cold-blooded} ({poikilothermal}) animals, whose body temperature follows the variations in temperature of the surrounding medium.