Dibranchiata (Noun)
Meaning
Comprising all living cephalopods except the family Nautilidae: the orders Octopoda (octopuses) and Decapoda (squids and cuttlefish).
Classification
Nouns denoting animals.
Examples
- The class Cephalopoda is often divided into two subclasses, the nautiloid Nautiloidea and the dibranchiata Cephalopoda that comprises all the living cephalopods except the family Nautilidae.
- The dibranchiata is distinguished from nautiloids by the possession of only one gill, as opposed to four pairs in nautiloids.
- The shell in dibranchiata is usually internal or absent and siphunculi are present in its chambered shell.
- Dibranchiata possess a distinct head with large brain and eyes, and a pair of tentacles and arms that are usually modified for grasping and crawling.
- The dibranchiata includes the orders Octopoda, which comprises the octopuses, and Decapoda, which comprises the squids and cuttlefish.