tectibranch, a. and n. Zool.
(ˈtɛktɪbræŋk)
[f. L. tect-us covered + branchiæ (Gr. βράγχια) gills.]
a. adj. Belonging to the order or sub-order Tectibranchiata of gastropod molluscs, comprising marine forms having the gills covered by the mantle, and small shells often concealed by the mantle. b. n. A gastropod belonging to this division. So tectiˈbranchian, tectiˈbranchiate adjs. and ns. in same senses.
| 1836–9 Todd's Cycl. Anat. II. 381/1 The internal or dermic shells are formed in many of the..tectibranchiate orders. 1839 Penny Cycl. XIV. 322/1 Gastropods are divided into the following orders..:—1. Nudibranchians... 2. Inferobranchians... 3. Tectibranchians [etc.]. 1851 Woodward Mollusca i. 34 The respiratory organs form tufts..protected by a fold of the mantle, as in the Inferobranchs and Tectibranchs of Cuvier. 1894 Proc. Zool. Soc. 20 Nov. 666 The posterior pallial lobes of various genera of Bulloid Tectibranchs. |