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Peripatopsidae
Peripatopsidae or the Southern Velvet Worms are one of two extant families of velvet worm. This family includes more than 140 described species distributed among 41 genera, but some authorities deem only 131 of these species to be valid. The French zoologist Eugène Louis Bouvier proposed this family in 1905 with '' Peripatopsis'' as the type genus. Description The Peripatopsidae exhibit relatively many characteristics that are perceived as original or "primitive" with respect to the Peripatidae. The species in this family have relatively few legs, ranging from 13 pairs (in '' Ooperipatellus nanus'') to a maximum of 29 pairs (in '' Paraperipatus papuensis''). Behind or between the last leg pair is the genital opening (gonopore). This family includes both oviparous genera (e.g., '' Ooperipatellus'' and '' Ooperipatus'') and viviparous genera, which adopt various modes of supplying nourishment to their embryos, ranging from lecithotrophic ovoviviparity (with yolky eggs retained ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Onychophora
Onychophora (from , , "claws"; and , , "to carry"), commonly known as velvet worms (for their velvety texture and somewhat wormlike appearance) or more ambiguously as peripatus (after the first described genus, ''Peripatus''), is a phylum of elongate, soft-bodied, many-legged animals. In appearance they have variously been compared to worms with legs, caterpillars, and slugs. They prey upon other invertebrates, which they catch by ejecting an adhesive slime. Approximately 200 species of velvet worms have been described, although the true number is likely to be much greater. The two extant families of velvet worms are Peripatidae and Peripatopsidae. They show a peculiar distribution, with the peripatids being predominantly equatorial and tropical, while the peripatopsids are all found south of the equator. It is the only phylum within Animalia that is wholly endemic to terrestrial environments, at least among extant members. Velvet worms are generally considered close relatives o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Occiperipatoides
''Occiperipatoides'' is a monospecific genus of velvet worm containing the single species ''Occiperipatoides gilesii''. This genus is ovoviviparous and found in Western Australia. The genus is part of the ancient phylum Onychophora that contains soft-bodied, many-legged relatives of arthropods known commonly as velvet worms. Characteristics ''Occiperipatoides gilesii'' has a unique combination of features that differentiate it from other members of the family Peripatopsidae found in Western Australia. It has 16 pairs of oncopods, unstructured appendages with a stubby appearance, that are mostly uniform in size. The skin of the velvet worm is covered with papillae that are cylindrical in shape and more elongated in comparison to closely related West Australian species in the genus '' Kumbadjena''. These papillae are covered in ribbed scales that give the skin a velvety appearance. ''O. gilesii'' also exhibits a ridge-like structure that segments the papillae at the first oncop ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peripatoides
''Peripatoides'' is a genus of velvet worms in the family Peripatopsidae. Velvet worms in this genus are found throughout New Zealand. Like all velvet worms, these animals are nocturnal predators that spit a sticky slime to trap their prey. Unlike the species in the only other genus of velvet worms found in New Zealand, '' Ooperipatellus'', which lay eggs (that is, are oviparous), the species in the genus ''Peripatoides'' are live-bearing (ovoviviparous). Description The number of legs in this genus varies among species but is generally stable within species. Most species have 15 pairs of legs, but one species ('' Peripatoides suteri'') has 16 leg pairs instead. Velvet worms in this genus range from 5 mm to 120 mm in length. Velvet worms in this genus exhibit two traits that are especially unusual in the family Peripatopsidae. First, velvet worms in this genus lack crural glands and crural papillae, which are present in most peripatopsid genera. Second, the anal gla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paraperipatus
''Paraperipatus'' is a genus of velvet worms in the family Peripatopsidae. This genus exhibits matrotrophic viviparity, that is, mothers in this genus retain eggs in their uteri and supply nourishment to their embryos, but without any placenta. Species in this genus are found in New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ... and the surrounding islands, including the Maluku achipelago. Description The number of legs vary within species as well as among species in this genus and can range from as few as 21 pairs (e.g., in '' P. ceramensis'') up to 27 pairs in males and 29 pairs in females (both in '' P. papuensis''). The maximum number of leg pairs recorded in this genus (29) is also the maximum number of leg pairs found in the family Peripatopsidae. Females in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Metaperipatus
''Metaperipatus'' is a genus of velvet worms in the family Peripatopsidae that contains two species found in Chile, including ''Metaperipatus inae''. This genus was created by the American zoologist Austin Hobart Clark in 1913 to contain the type species, ''M. blainvillei''. Authorities believe ''M. blainvillei'' is a species complex, however, and some consider ''M. blainvillei'' a ''nomen dubium''. Discovery The velvet worm ''M. blainvillei'' was first described in 1837 by the French entomologist Paul Gervais. He named this species ''Venilia blainvillei'' after the French zoologist Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville. The precise type locality is unknown, however, and the type material has been lost, leading some authorities to deem ''M. blainvillei'' a ''nomen dubium''. The species ''M. inae'' was first described in 2007 by the German biologist Georg Mayer, who named this species after his wife, Ina Mayer, who found the first specimen. Mayer based the original description ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Opisthopatus
''Opisthopatus'' is a genus of South African velvet worms in the family Peripatopsidae. Velvet worms in this genus are found in South Africa, in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga provinces, as well as in Lesotho and Eswatini. This genus was first proposed in 1899 by the zoologist William F. Purcell to contain the newly discovered species '' O. cinctipes'', which he designated as the type species. Description Color is highly variable in this genus, both among and within species. The dorsal integument ranges from blue black to slate grey or brown, and the ventral integument ranges from creamy white to brown. The number of legs in this genus range from 16 pairs (e.g., in ''O. cinctipes'') to 18 pairs (in '' O. roseus''). Velvet worms in this genus use the last pair of legs in walking. This leg pair is fully developed, with claws and four pads on each foot. The feet in this genus feature three distal leg papillae: one anterior, one posterior, and one median. The gen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paraperipatus Papuensis
''Paraperipatus papuensis'' is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili .... This species is a pale greenish blue. Females of this species may have as few as 21 pairs of legs or as many as 29 pairs, exhibiting the greatest intraspecific variation in leg number found in any peripatopsid species. Males of this species range from 21 to 27 leg pairs. The maximum number of leg pairs recorded in this species (29) is also the maximum number of leg pairs found in the family Peripatopsidae. Females range from 22 mm to 83 mm in length, whereas males range from 19 mm to 45 mm. The type locality is in Western New Guinea, Indonesia. References Further reading * Onychophorans of Australasia Onychophoran spe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ooperipatellus
''Ooperipatellus'' is a genus of Australian and New Zealand velvet worms in the Peripatopsidae family. Species in this genus are oviparous. This genus was proposed by Hilke Ruhberg in 1985, with '' Ooperipatellus insignis'' designed at the type species. This genus is notable as the only one in which velvet worms have no more than 14 pairs of legs: Description Most species in this genus have 14 leg pairs, and '' O. nanus'' has only 13 pairs, the minimum number found in the phylum Onychophora. Velvet worms in this genus are also among the smallest known, with adults often only 10 to 20 mm long. Species in this genus range in size from ''O nanus'', which can be only 5 mm long, to '' O. nickmayeri'', which can reach 60 mm in length. Velvet worms in this genus have no modified head papillae, the males feature a cruciform genital opening (gonopore), and the females feature an ovipositor. This genus contains all oviparous velvet worm species with 13 or 14 leg pairs and no modified hea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peripatidae
Peripatidae is a family of velvet worms. This family includes more than 90 described species distributed among 13 genera, but some authorities deem only 80 of these species to be valid. The oldest putative representatives of the family herald from Burmese amber dated to the mid-Cretaceous, around 100 million years ago, with representatives from Dominican and Baltic amber attesting to a broader distribution in the Palaeogene / Neogene; molecular variability suggests that the family's crown group may have arisen in the early Mesozoic. Description The Peripatidae exhibit a range of derivative features. They are longer, on average, than the Peripatopsidae and also have more leg pairs. The number of legs in the Peripatidae varies within species as well as among species and ranges from 19 pairs (in '' Typhloperipatus williamsoni'') to 43 pairs (in '' Plicatoperipatus jamaicensis''). The gonopore is always between the penultimate leg pair. There are no known oviparous species—the ov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peripatopsis
''Peripatopsis'' is a genus of velvet worms in the Peripatopsidae family. These velvet worms are found in the KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape, and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. This genus was proposed by the British zoologist Reginald I. Pocock in 1894 with '' Peripatopsis capensis'' designated as the type species. Description The number of legs in this genus ranges from as few as 16 pairs (e.g., in '' P. clavigera'') to as many as 25 pairs (in '' P. moseleyi'') and varies within species when the number is greater than 18 pairs. Velvet worms in this genus feature a last pair of legs (the genital pair) that is rudimentary or reduced in size, mainly in males. The feet in this genus feature three distal papillae: two anterior and one posterior. The gonopore in the male is cross-shaped but in the female takes the form of a longitudinal slit. Reproduction This genus exhibits matrotrophic viviparity, that is, mothers in this genus retain eggs in their uteri and supply nour ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ooperipatellus Nanus
''Ooperipatellus nanus'' is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. This species is endemic to New Zealand and is found in the South Island. Taxonomy This species was first described by Hilke Ruhberg in 1985. Description ''Ooperipatellus nanus'' is a small species of velvet worm that grows to a length of approximately 10 mm. This species is tan or brown in color on its back but yellow on its underside. It is oviparous and has 13 pairs of legs, which is the minimum number found in the phylum Onychophora. Distribution ''Ooperipatellus nanus'' has only been found in Southland, in the Takitimu Mountains. Life cycle This species produce young by laying eggs from which the young subsequently hatch. Host species ''Ooperipatellus nanus'' are found mainly in rotting beech logs. Conservation status This species has been classified as having the "At Risk, Naturally Uncommon" with the qualifier of "One Location" conservation status under the New Zealand ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Regimitra
''Regimitra'' is a monospecific genus of velvet worm containing the single species ''Regimitra quadricaula''. The males of this species have 15 pairs of legs, with the last pair fully developed; females have either 15 leg pairs, with the last pair clawed but reduced, or only 14 leg pairs, preceding a pair reduced to a lump without feet or claws. The type locality of this species is Tuggolo State Forest, New South Wales, Australia New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a state on the east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south, and South Australia to the west. Its coast borders the Coral and Tasman Seas to the east. T .... References Further reading * Onychophorans of Australasia Monotypic onychophoran genera Fauna of New South Wales Endemic fauna of Australia Taxa named by Amanda Reid (malacologist) {{Onychophora-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
