Pycnogonida

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Pycnogonida \Pyc`no*gon"i*da\, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. ? thick
     crowded + ? knee.] (Zool.)
     A class of marine arthropods in which the body is small and
     thin, and the eight legs usually very long; -- called also
     {Pantopoda}.
     [1913 Webster]


  
     Note: The abdomen is rudimentary, and the triangular mouth is
           at the end of a tubular proboscis. Many of them live at
           great depths in the sea, and the largest of them
           measure two feet across the extended legs.
           [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  Pycnogonida
       n : sea spiders [syn: {order Pycnogonida}]