serpula Meaning, Definition & Usage

Ser"pu*la noun

Etymology

L., a little snake. See Serpent.

Wordforms

plural Serpulæ E Serpulas

Definitions

1. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of tubicolous annelids of the genus Serpula and allied genera of the family Serpulidæ. They secrete a calcareous tube, which is usually irregularly contorted, but is sometimes spirally coiled. The worm has a wreath of plumelike and often bright-colored gills around its head, and usually an operculum to close the aperture of its tube when it retracts.