noun
- small, primitive marine animals that are the simplest living relatives of vertebrates, having a rod-like structure called a notochord but no true backbone
Usage: biology; zoology
Examples
- Lancelets are found buried in sandy ocean floors around the world.
- The biology class studied lancelets to understand early vertebrate evolution.
- Lancelets filter feed by drawing water through their bodies.
- Scientists consider lancelets important for understanding how vertebrates evolved.
- The lancelet’s notochord is similar to the early spine found in vertebrate embryos.
- Marine biologists collected lancelets from the shallow coastal waters.