In
zoology, a
tentacle is a flexible, mobile, elongated
organ present in some species of
animals, most of them
invertebrates. In animal anatomy, tentacles usually occur in one or more pairs. Anatomically, the tentacles of animals work mainly like
muscular hydrostats. Most forms of tentacles are used for grasping and feeding. Many are
sensory organs, variously receptive to
touch,
vision, or to the
smell or taste of particular foods or threats. Examples of such tentacles are the "eye stalks" of various kinds of
snails. Some kinds of tentacles have both sensory and manipulatory functions.