abranchiate
adj.adj. describing animals that do not have gills. These creatures usually live in water and get oxygen through their skin or other body parts.
adj. lacking gills; referring to organisms that do not possess specialized respiratory structures for extracting oxygen from water.
Some abranchiate species live in the deep ocean.
The researcher studied abranchiate fish to understand how they survive in environments with very low oxygen levels.
While most aquatic vertebrates rely on gills for respiration, abranchiate species have evolved alternative methods, such as cutaneous gas exchange, to maintain their metabolic needs.
* First attested in the 19th century. * a- (“not”) + branchiate (“gills”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Last updated May 18, 2026