a relict
relict /ˈrelikt/ noun 1. a thing that has survived from an earlier period or in a primitive form. 2. an animal or plant that has survived while others of its group have become extinct, e.g., the coelacanth. 3. a species or community that formerly had a wider distribution but now survives in only a few localities such as refugia. [early 20th cent.: from Latin relictus ‘left behind,’ past participle of the verb relinquere.] 4. ‹archaic› a widow. [late Middle English: from Old French relicte ‘(woman) left behind,’ from late Latin relicta, from the verb relinquere.]
