myriapod

myriapod
/mir"ee euh pod'/, n.
1. any arthropod of the group Myriapoda, having an elongated segmented body with numerous paired, jointed legs, formerly classified as a class comprising the centipedes and millipedes.
adj.
2. Also, myriapodous /mir'ee ap"euh deuhs/. belonging or pertaining to the myriapods.
3. having very numerous legs.
Also, myriopod.
[1820-30; < NL Myriapoda. See MYRIA-, -POD]

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      any member of several closely related groups of the invertebrate phylum Arthropoda, including the extinct Archipolypoda, extant Diplopoda, or millipedes (see millipede), Chilopoda, or centipedes (see centipede), Pauropoda (see pauropod), and Symphyla (see symphylan). The myriapods are a little-known group, although some 11,000 living species have been recognized.

      Most myriapods are seldom seen. Some attract attention by spectacular mass migration, while others are found occasionally in dark corners of houses and other buildings. Certain tropical species can inflict painful bites on humans if handled or accidentally encountered. The primary significance of myriapods is the role they play in the ecological balance of forested regions. In addition, their limited ability to migrate, their dependence upon stable conditions of moisture and shelter, and their general intolerance of seawater, together with the fact that they appeared rather early in geological history and have since evolved little, make the myriapods important indicators of land-water relationships. They can provide useful information for understanding evolution and geographic dispersal.

      Because myriapods are largely phytosaprophagous (subsisting on dead plants), they play an important role in the breakdown of dead vegetable material. Some species are primarily carnivorous, however. Myriapods are most abundant and diverse in tropical and temperate forests, although some species of diplopods and an even greater number of chilopods thrive in grassland or semiarid habitats, and others live in desert conditions.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Myriapod — Myr i*a*pod, n. [Cf. F. myriapode.] (Zo[ o]l.) One of the Myriapoda. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • myriapod — var of MYRIOPOD * * * myr·ia·pod (mirґe ə pod) a member of the Myriapoda; a centipede or millipede …   Medical dictionary

  • myriapod — ► NOUN Zoology ▪ a centipede, millipede, or other arthropod having an elongated body with numerous leg bearing segments. ORIGIN from Greek murioi 10,000 + pous foot …   English terms dictionary

  • myriapod — [mir′ē ə päd΄] adj. [< ModL Myriapoda: see MYRIA & POD] having many legs: said esp. of millipedes and centipedes n. a millipede or centipede …   English World dictionary

  • myriapod — also myriopod noun Etymology: ultimately from Greek myrioi + pod , pous foot more at foot Date: 1826 any of a group (Myriapoda) of arthropods having the body made up of numerous similar segments nearly all of which bear true jointed legs and… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • myriapod — noun Any arthropod (such as centipedes and millipedes) of the subphylum Myriapoda …   Wiktionary

  • myriapod — mɪrɪəpÉ‘d / pÉ’d n. any arthropod belonging to the group Myriapoda (marked by long segmented bodies and many legs) …   English contemporary dictionary

  • myriapod — [ mɪrɪəpɒd] noun Zoology a centipede, millipede, or other arthropod having an elongated body with numerous leg bearing segments. Origin C19: from mod. L. Myriapoda (former class name), from Gk murias (see myriad) + pous, pod foot …   English new terms dictionary

  • myriapod — myr·i·a·pod …   English syllables

  • myriapod — myr•i•a•pod or myr•i•o•pod [[t]ˈmɪr i əˌpɒd[/t]] n. ivt any arthropod having an elongated segmented body with numerous paired, jointed legs, as a centipede or millipede • Etymology: 1820–30; < NL Myriapoda, the former taxonomic name. See myria …   From formal English to slang

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