spiny-headed worm

[spahy-nee-hed-id]

noun

1. any of a small group of endoparasites of the phylum Acanthocephala, as larvae parasitic in insects and crustaceans and as adults in various vertebrates.

spiny-headed worm

1. See acanthocephalan

Word History and Origins

Origin of spiny-headed worm¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

After burrowing into the walls of a fish's intestines, the spiny-headed worm Pomphorhynchus laevis inflates its proboscis to better embed itself in the soft tissue.

Read more on Science Magazine