In
invertebrate biology, an
appendage (or
outgrowth) is an external body part, or natural prolongation, that protrudes from an
organism's body (in vertebrate biology, an example would be a
vertebrate's
limbs). It is a general term that covers any of the
homologous body parts that may extend from a
body segment. These include
antennae,
mouthparts (including
mandibles,
maxillae and
maxillipeds),
gills, walking
legs (
pereiopods), swimming legs (
pleopods), sexual organs (
gonopods), and parts of the tail (
uropods). Typically, each body segment carries one pair of appendages.