Peripatidae is a family of

velvet worm Onychophora (from grc, ονυχής, , "claws"; and , , "to carry"), commonly known as velvet worms (due to their velvety texture and somewhat wormlike appearance) or more ambiguously as peripatus (after the first described genus, ''Peripatus' ...

s. The oldest putative representatives of the family herald from

Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. ...

dated to the mid-Cretaceous, around 100 Ma, with representatives from Dominican and

Baltic amber The Baltic region is home to the largest known deposit of amber, called Baltic amber or succinite. It was produced sometime during the Eocene epoch, but exactly when is controversial. It has been estimated that these forests created more than 1 ...

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 Peripatopsidae is one of the two living velvet worm families. Description The Peripatopsidae exhibit relatively many characteristics that are perceived as original or "primitive" with respect to the Peripatidae. The number of leg pairs in this f ...

and also have more leg pairs. The number of leg pairs in the Peripatidae range from 19 (in ''

Typhloperipatus williamsoni ''Typhloperipatus'' is a genus of velvet worm Onychophora (from grc, ονυχής, , "claws"; and , , "to carry"), commonly known as velvet worms (due to their velvety texture and somewhat wormlike appearance) or more ambiguously as peripatu ...

'') to 43 (in ''

Plicatoperipatus jamaicensis ''Plicatoperipatus'' is a monospecific genus of velvet worm containing the single species ''Plicatoperipatus jamaicensis''. It is endemic to Jamaica. This species ranges from 25 mm to 65 mm in length. Males in this species have 35 pairs of legs; ...

''). The gonopore is always between the penultimate leg pair. There are no oviparous species—the overwhelming majority are viviparous. The females of many viviparous species develop a placenta with which to provide the growing embryo with nutrients.

Distribution

The Peripatidae are restricted to the tropical and subtropical zones; in particular, they inhabit

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, the Caribbean, northern

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the souther ...

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north ...

Northeast India , native_name_lang = mni , settlement_type = , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , motto = , image_map = Northeast india.png , ...

, and

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

Taxonomy

Neopatida

Neopatida is a monophyletic lineage within the Peripatidae, comprising all peripatids except the few found outside of the Americas. The excluded peripatid genera are the southeast Asian ''

Cretoperipatus ''Cretoperipatus burmiticus'' is an extinct species of velvet worm that is known from Cretaceous Burmese amber approximately 100 million years old. It was found in Kachin state, Myanmar. Taxonomy The species can be assigned to one of the mode ...

'' and ''

Eoperipatus ''Eoperipatus'' is a Southeast Asian genus of velvet worm in the family Peripatidae. The number of legs in this genus varies within species and ranges from 22 pairs (in '' E. butleri'') to 25 pairs (in '' E. horsti'' and '' E. weldoni''). Spec ...

'', the African ''

Mesoperipatus ''Mesoperipatus'' is a monospecific genus of velvet worm in the Peripatidae Peripatidae is a family of velvet worms. The oldest putative representatives of the family herald from Burmese amber dated to the mid-Cretaceous, around 100 Ma, with ...

'', and the northeast Indian ''Typhloperipatus''.

Genera

The family consists of the following genera: :* ''

Cerradopatus ''Cerradopatus'' is a monospecific genus In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific ta ...

'' Oliveira ''et al.'', 2015 :* ''

Engel Engel means "angel" in some Germanic languages. Engel or Die Engel may refer to: People * Engel (surname) * Engel Beltré (born 1989), Dominican baseball player Music * Engel (band), a Swedish industrial/melodic death metal band * "Engel" (s ...

& Grimaldi, 2002 :* ''

'' Evans, 1901 :* ''

Typhloperipatus ''Typhloperipatus'' is a genus of velvet worm in the family Peripatidae, containing the sole species ''Typhloperipatus williamsoni''. It is the only species in the phylum found in South Asia. The species was discovered in northeastern India in 19 ...

Kemp Kemp may refer to: Places * Kemp, Illinois * Kemp, Ohio * Kemp, Oklahoma * Kemp, Texas * Kemp Land and Kemp Coast, Antarctica * Kemp Town, a 19th-century estate in East Sussex, England * Kemps Corner, place in India People * Kemp (surname) * Ke ...

, 1913 * Neopatida :* ''

Epiperipatus ''Epiperipatus'' is the most diverse genus of neotropical velvet worms in the family Peripatidae. Species in this genus are found in Central and South America. Velvet worms in this genus can have as few as 23 pairs of legs (in '' E. hyperbolicus' ...

'' Clark, 1913 :* ''

Heteroperipatus ''Heteroperipatus'' is a genus of Central American velvet worms in the Peripatidae Peripatidae is a family of velvet worms. The oldest putative representatives of the family herald from Burmese amber dated to the mid-Cretaceous, around 100 Ma ...

'' Zilch, 1954 :* ''

Macroperipatus ''Macroperipatus'' is a genus of Neotropical velvet worms in the Peripatidae family. Velvet worms in this genus can have as few as 24 pairs of legs (in '' M. guianensis'') or as many as 42 leg pairs (in '' M. torquatus''). Species The genus cont ...

'' Clark, 1913 :* ''

Mongeperipatus ''Mongeperipatus'' is a genus of Central American velvet worms in the family Peripatidae. The species in this genus are notable for their giant size (with the largest specimens ranging from 18 cm to 22 cm in length) and for the degree of sexual d ...

'' Barquero-González ''et al.'', 2020 :* ''

Oroperipatus ''Oroperipatus'' is a genus of Neotropical velvet worms in the family Peripatidae. Species The genus contains the following species: * ''Oroperipatus balzani'' (Camerano, 1897) * ''Oroperipatus belli'' (Bouvier, 1904) * ''Oroperipatus bimberg ...

'' Cockerell, 1908 :* ''

Peripatus ''Peripatus'' is a genus of velvet worms in the Peripatidae family. The name "peripatus" (unitalicised and uncapitalised) is also used to refer to the Onychophora as a whole, although this group comprises many other genera besides ''Peripatus' ...

'' Guilding, 1826 :* ''

Plicatoperipatus ''Plicatoperipatus'' is a monospecific genus of velvet worm containing the single species ''Plicatoperipatus jamaicensis''. It is endemic to Jamaica. This species ranges from 25 mm to 65 mm in length. Males in this species have 35 pairs of le ...

'' (Grabham & Cockerell, 1892) :* ''

Principapillatus ''Principapillatus'' is a monospecific genus of velvet worm containing the single species ''Principapillatus hitoyensis''. Males of this species have 26 to 29 pairs of legs, usually 27 or 28; females have 30 to 32, usually 30 or 31. This velvet w ...

'' Oliveira ''et al.'', 2013 :* ''

Speleoperipatus ''Speleoperipatus'' is a monospecific genus of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family, containing the single species ''Speleoperipatus spelaeus''. This species is a pale greenish yellow, almost white, with 22 or 23 pairs of legs and no eyes. Spec ...

'' Peck, 1975

References

Onychophoran families Bartonian first appearances Extant Eocene first appearances {{Onychophore-stub