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Definition of proturan - 2 dictionary results

pro⋅tu⋅ran

[pruh-toor-uhn, -tyoor-]
–noun
1. a proturan insect; telsontail.
–adjective
2. belonging or pertaining to the order Protura, compromising the telsontails.

Origin:
< NL Protur(a) name of the order (see prot-, uro- 2 , -a 1 ) + -an
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Encyclopedia

proturan

any of a group of about 150 species of minute (0.5 to 2 mm [0.02 to 0.08 inch]), pale, wingless, blind, primitive insects that live in damp humus and soil and feed on decaying organic matter. Proturans, frequently known as telsontails, include some of the most primitive hexapods (i.e., animals with six legs). They are worldwide in distribution, although the group was unknown before 1907.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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