[tel-suh
n-teyl] 
| any of several minute, wingless, primitive insects of the order Protura, having a cone-shaped head with sucking and piercing mouthparts and no eyes or antennae, inhabiting damp soil or decaying organic matter. |
telsontail
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.
Learn more about telsontail with a free trial on Britannica.com.