Atropidae

plural noun

Atrop·​i·​dae

ə‧ˈträpəˌdē

: a widely distributed family of wingless insects (order Corrodentia) that include most book lice and that feed on organic debris and often damage various stored products (as processed foods, book bindings, and herbarium specimens)

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Atropos, type genus (from Greek Atropos) + -idae; from the belief that the ticking sound made by some species of book lice forebodes a death

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