noun
- A marine animal with a gelatinous, transparent body and eight rows of cilia that it uses for movement, often bioluminescent.
Usage: Also called a comb jelly.; Scientific/biological term.
Examples
- The ctenophore drifted through the ocean depths, its rows of cilia creating a shimmering rainbow effect.
- Unlike jellyfish, ctenophores use cilia rather than tentacles for propulsion.
- The bioluminescent ctenophore glowed softly in the dark waters of the deep sea.
- Marine biologists study ctenophores to understand early animal evolution.
- A ctenophore's transparent body makes it nearly invisible to predators in the open ocean.