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Why are lancelets also called amphioxus?
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Chordate
X-ray fish (Pristella maxillaris), is an example of a chordate with a visible backbone.
The term amphioxus is derived from the Greek words amphi, meaning "both," and oxys, meaning "sharp" or "keen". This name was introduced in 1836 by the English naturalist William Yarrell to describe the animal's physical appearance, specifically that it is pointed at both ends.1
While Amphioxus was originally used as a genus name, it was later discovered that the Italian zoologist Gabriele Costa had already named the same genus Branchiostoma two years earlier. Under the rules of biological taxonomy, Branchiostoma takes priority as the official scientific name, though "amphioxus" remains a common name for these cephalochordates.12