Having the shape or form of a claw or pincer, or resembling a chela in structure and function.
From Greek 'chele' (claw) plus Latin '-form' (having the form of), meaning 'claw-shaped.' Used to describe appendages and structures across multiple phyla.
Evolution has independently invented cheliform (claw-shaped) structures dozens of times—scorpions, crabs, mantises, even some spiders have different versions, showing that when you need to grab something, nature keeps coming back to the claw solution!
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