dermopteran

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Dermoptera +‎ -an

Noun[edit]

dermopteran (plural dermopterans)

  1. (mammalogy) Any mammal in the order Dermoptera, the flying lemurs
  2. (entomology, obsolete) Any insect which has the anterior pair of wings coriaceous, and does not use them in flight.[1]
    Earwigs are dermopterans.
  3. (entomology) Misspelling of dermapteran.

Usage notes[edit]

  • Attempts in the 19th century to correct the name of the insect order Dermaptera to Dermoptera were unsuccessful because that name was already in use for the flying lemurs, so applying this derived term to insects is now considered taxonomically incorrect. More recent usage of that sense seems to be mostly from confusion over the spelling of the insect order.

References[edit]

  1. ^ “dermopteran”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
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