Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A bryozoan colony or its supporting skeletal structure.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun The polypary or polypidom of a polyzoan; a colony of polypides; a compound or aggregate polyzoan; a polyzoal cœnœcium.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Zoöl.) The compound organism of a polyzoan.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun zoology A colony of
polyzoa - noun zoology The
polypary of such a colony
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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In one species observed by me all the avicularia on the same branch often moved simultaneously backwards and forwards, with the lower jaw widely open, through an angle of about 90°, in the course of five seconds; and their movement caused the whole polyzoary to tremble.
VII. Miscellaneous Objections to the Theory of Natural Selection 1909
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They are supposed to serve as a defence, and may be seen, as Mr. Busk remarks, to sweep slowly and carefully over the surface of the polyzoary, removing what might be noxious to the delicate inhabitants of the cells when their tentacula are protruded.
VII. Miscellaneous Objections to the Theory of Natural Selection 1909
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In one species examined by me the vibracula were slightly curved and serrated along the outer margin; and all of them on the same polyzoary often moved simultaneously; so that, acting like long oars, they swept a branch rapidly across the object-glass of my microscope.
VII. Miscellaneous Objections to the Theory of Natural Selection 1909
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