Dor″sal (?), a. [F. dorsal, LL. dorsalis, fr. L. dorsualis, fr. dorsum back; cf. Gr. �, �, mountain ridge. Cf. Dorse, Dorsel, Dosel.] 1. (Anat.) Pertaining to, or situated near, the back, or dorsum, of an animal or of one of its parts; notal; tergal; neural; as, the dorsal fin of a fish; the dorsal artery of the tongue; — opposed to ventral.
2. (Bot.) (a) Pertaining to the surface naturally inferior, as of a leaf. (b) Pertaining to the surface naturally superior, as of a creeping hepatic moss.
Dorsal vessel(Zoöl.), a central pulsating blood vessel along the back of insects, acting as a heart.