Plural of ectozoon; external parasites that live on the outer surface of an animal's body rather than inside it.
From Greek 'ekto-' meaning 'outside' and 'zoa' the plural of 'zoon' meaning 'animal.' The term emerged in 19th-century parasitology to distinguish surface parasites from internal ones.
Fleas and lice are ectozoa, and they've shaped human history more than you'd think—they spread plague, caused entire armies to retreat, and drove people to invent better hygiene. Pretty wild that tiny external bugs changed the course of civilization!
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