‖Mal′a‐cop″o‐da (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. � soft + -poda.] (Zoöl.) A class of air-breathing Arthropoda; — called also Protracheata, and Onychophora.
☞ They somewhat resemble myriapods, and have from seventeen to thirty-three pairs of short, imperfectly jointed legs, two pairs of simple jaws, and a pair of antennæ. The trancheæ are connected with numerous spiracles scattered over the surface of the body. Peripatus is the only known genus. See Peripatus.