sea butterfly

American  

noun

1. any member of the gastropod order Pteropoda, shelled marine mollusks so called for their ability to swim using winglike extensions of the foot.

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sea butterfly British  

noun

1. another name for pteropod

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Etymology

Origin of sea butterfly

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

Research suggests that the acidity that could develop by 2100 could make it harder for oysters, clams, sea urchins and corals to build their protective shells, and it could even dissolve the shell of a pea-size creature at the base of the food chain known as a sea butterfly.

From Washington Post

Lastly, meet the sea butterfly.

From New York Times

But the sea butterfly, a marine snail the size of a peppercorn, has long appeared to use winglike appendages to fly through the water.

From New York Times

Dr. Murphy, now a researcher at Johns Hopkins, said the sea butterfly’s motion was easier to see because insects flap their wings hundreds of times a second, while the sea butterfly has four to five wing beats a second.

From New York Times

Dr. Murphy built the apparatus used to study the sea butterfly for his doctoral thesis.

From New York Times