‖De‐cap″o‐da (dē̍‐kăp″ō̍‐dȧ), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. δέκα ten + πούσ, ποδόσ, foot.] 1. (Zoöl.) The order of Crustacea which includes the shrimps, lobsters, crabs, etc.
☞ They have a carapace, covering and uniting the somites of the head and thorax and inclosing a gill chamber on each side, and usually have five (rarely six) pairs of legs. They are divided into two principal groups: Brachyura and Macrura. Some writers recognize a third (Anomura) intermediate between the others.
2. (Zoöl.) A division of the dibranchiate cephalopods including the cuttlefishes and squids. See Decacera.