copepod
noun
co·pe·pod ˈkō-pə-ˌpäd 
: any of a large subclass (Copepoda) of usually minute freshwater and marine crustaceans
copepod adjective
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The spit isn’t actually drool, but a parasitic copepod. 
Sabrina Imbler, The Atlantic, 16 Feb. 2021 And finally, warming oceans have forced copepods, a tiny crustacean that’s the main staple of the North Atlantic right whale’s diet, to migrate north. Brian J. Skerry, National Geographic, 20 May 2020 But as the distribution of copepods, the zooplankton that are the whales’ main food source, shifted north, so too did the whales. Nick Hawkins, National Geographic, 11 July 2019 As right whales' preferred food, which are called copepods, move further north to avoid the warming waters, right whales are more concentrated in the US and Canada. Allen Kim, CNN, 30 Jan. 2020 Many of these seabirds eat tiny shrimplike creatures such as krill and copepods, whose numbers -- according to federal marine surveys -- have declined as the water off Alaska has warmed. Hal Bernton, Anchorage Daily News, 10 Nov. 2019 During a monthlong visit last summer, biologist Alexis Will observed auklets diving into the water in search of copepods. Hal Bernton, Anchorage Daily News, 10 Nov. 2019 The cold waters off the Oregon coast usually support a robust community of copepods, a nutrient-rich type of zooplankton that provide an important food source for fish large and small, from herring to salmon. oregonlive, 20 Sep. 2019 All of this was a buffet for zooplankton, tiny creatures such as copepods and krill that are rich in fats and are key food sources for young fish, birds and some marine mammals. Hal Bernton, The Seattle Times, 15 Sep. 2019 See More
Sabrina Imbler, The Atlantic, 16 Feb. 2021 And finally, warming oceans have forced copepods, a tiny crustacean that’s the main staple of the North Atlantic right whale’s diet, to migrate north. Brian J. Skerry, National Geographic, 20 May 2020 But as the distribution of copepods, the zooplankton that are the whales’ main food source, shifted north, so too did the whales. Nick Hawkins, National Geographic, 11 July 2019 As right whales' preferred food, which are called copepods, move further north to avoid the warming waters, right whales are more concentrated in the US and Canada. Allen Kim, CNN, 30 Jan. 2020 Many of these seabirds eat tiny shrimplike creatures such as krill and copepods, whose numbers -- according to federal marine surveys -- have declined as the water off Alaska has warmed. Hal Bernton, Anchorage Daily News, 10 Nov. 2019 During a monthlong visit last summer, biologist Alexis Will observed auklets diving into the water in search of copepods. Hal Bernton, Anchorage Daily News, 10 Nov. 2019 The cold waters off the Oregon coast usually support a robust community of copepods, a nutrient-rich type of zooplankton that provide an important food source for fish large and small, from herring to salmon. oregonlive, 20 Sep. 2019 All of this was a buffet for zooplankton, tiny creatures such as copepods and krill that are rich in fats and are key food sources for young fish, birds and some marine mammals. Hal Bernton, The Seattle Times, 15 Sep. 2019 See More Word History
Etymology
ultimately from Greek kōpē oar, handle + pod-, pous foot; probably akin to Latin capere to take — more at heave entry 1, foot
First Known Use
1836, in the meaning defined above