A marine organism that has feather-like or hair-like gills (branchiae) combined with or resembling cirri, such as certain worms and crustaceans.
From Latin 'cirrus' (curl, tendril) combined with 'branchia' (gill), literally meaning 'curly-gilled' or 'tendril-gilled.' This describes organisms whose gills or feeding structures resemble cirri.
Cirribranchs like feather duster worms have evolved gills that look exactly like ornate feathers, and they're so efficient at filter-feeding that a single worm can clear the water around it of plankton—aquarium keepers love them because they're like living water purifiers!
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