stomatopod

9.9

A sea animal called mantis shrimp with very strong front claws and eyes made of many parts

noun
/ˈstoʊmətəˌpɒd/

Specialized

: estomatópodo

With its vibrant colors, a stomatopod can be a stunning sight on the reef.

Examples

PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): Figure 20. A stomatopod crustacean, Figure 8, p. 4, from Manning (1974).

Academic text (1996)
The stomatopod is famous for its incredible vision and powerful claws.
Scientists study the stomatopod to understand its unique hunting techniques.

Synonyms

mantis shrimp

vsstomatopod

1 7.5

A tropical sea creature with bright colors and very strong claws

is the scientific order name for animals with complex eyes and powerful claws

mantis prawn

vsstomatopod

9.2

A large sea animal with strong front claws that hunts fish and crabs

is the scientific order name rather than this common label

mantis crab

vsstomatopod

8.9

A tropical sea animal like a crab that lives in burrows and uses large front claws to catch prey

refers to the scientific order known for complex eyes and stronger striking claws

Surface Forms

stomatopod singular

stomatopods plural

Morphology

stomatopod = stoma + pod (opaque) = stoma + pod

The word is a specialist scientific compound from Greek combining forms ('stoma-' + '-pod'); the meaning ('mantis shrimp') is technical and not derivable by an average B1 learner from the parts.

Etymology

The word stomatopod comes from the Greek parts stoma and pod, which mean 'mouth' and 'foot'. So think 'mouth-foot': the animal's strong front limbs sit by its mouth and work like feet or claws, which is why stomatopod is the name for the mantis shrimp.