Bdelloura

noun

Bdel·lou·ra | \ de-ˈlu̇r-ə, -ˈlau̇-rə\

Definition of Bdelloura

: a genus (the type of the family Bdellouridae) of triclad flatworms that live in the gills of the horseshoe crab

History and Etymology for Bdelloura

borrowed from New Latin, from Greek bdélla “leech” + New Latin -o- -o- + -ura -ura

Note: Introduced originally as a subgenus name by the American zoologist Joseph Leidy (1823-91) in “Helminthological Contributions.—No. 3,” Meeting of August 26, 1851, Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, vol. 5 (1850-51), pp. 239-44. Leidy footnotes the name with the explanation “bdella [Greek letters], a leech; oura [Greek letters, with omicron and upsilon written as a single letter]; because the animal adheres by the tail like a leech” (p. 241). The more regular Latinization would be Bdellura; it is uncertain if -o- is meant to be the combining vowel or a transliteration of Greek omicron.

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Bdelloura

Definition of Bdelloura

History and Etymology for Bdelloura

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