Eoperipatus horsti

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Eoperipatus horsti
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Onychophora
Family: Peripatidae
Genus: Eoperipatus
Species:
E. horsti
Binomial name
Eoperipatus horsti
Evans, 1901

Eoperipatus horsti is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. [1] Authorities have designated this velvet worm as the type species for the genus Eoperipatus , because among the species originally included in this genus, this species is the only one known from descriptions of both sexes. [2] This species is found in Malaysia. [2]

Contents

Discovery and distribution

This species was first described in 1901 by Richard Evans of Jesus College at the University of Oxford. He based the original description of this species on eleven specimens (six males and five females). These specimens were found in 1899 in dry rotten wood inside dead trees in the state of Kelantan in West Malaysia. [3] This species is named in honor of the zoologist Rutger Horst. [4]

In 1926, the English zoologist C. Boden Kloss reported finding another specimen of this species crawling on an open road in bright sunshine in the middle of the day. He found this specimen at sea level, 16 miles west of Johore Bahru, at the southern end of the Malay Penninsula. The zoologist William J. Dakin identified his velvet worm as a specimen of E. horsti. [5]

Description

Evans reports that the average length of his male specimens was 33.5 mm, with a maximum length of 40 mm, and the average length of his female specimens was 35.4 mm, with a maximum length of 46 mm. The average length of all eleven of his specimens was 34 mm. [3] Kloss reports finding a much larger specimen, measuring 62.5 mm in length. [5]

The dorsal surface of this species is brown with pale spots. A dark brown line runs down the middle of the back. The ventral surface ranges from pink to a yellowish grey. A row of whitish areas appear along the midline of the ventral surface. The basal piece of the primary papillae on the dorsal surface varies in shape between a cone and a cylinder, while the apical piece may be conical, cylindrical, or spherical. [3]

Females of this species have 24 or 25 pairs of legs; males have 23 or 24 leg pairs, usually 23 pairs. [6] [3] [4] The sole of each foot features four pads, except for the feet on last two pairs of legs. The penultimate pair has only three pads on each foot, and the last pair has only two pads on each foot. [3] On the fourth and fifth leg pairs, the nephridial tubercles appears at the proximal margin of the fourth pad. [7] Each foot features two papillae, one on the anterior margin and the other on the posterior margin. [3]

The genital opening is located between the penultimate pair of legs. In the female, this opening is a transverse slit, but in the male, this opening takes the form of a cross aligned with the transverse and longitudinal axes of the body. In the male of this species, the two leg pairs in front of the genital opening feature crural glands, with two openings for these glands in a groove on each leg. The male also features an opening for the anal glands between the last pair of legs. [3]

This species shares many traits with the other species of Eoperipatus. These characteristics include two papillae on the distal margin of each foot (one in front and one in back), a cruciform genital opening in the male, and a transverse slit for the female genital opening. [3] Other features considered characteristic of this genus include males with a single opening for the anal glands in front of the anus and crural tubercles linked by a dermal fold on each leg of the two pregenital leg pairs. [8]

Other traits distinguish E. horsti from the other described species of Eoperipatus: E. butleri , E. totoro , and E. weldoni , which are considered valid species, and E. sumatranus, which is considered a nomen dubium . [9] For example, E. horsti differs from these other species in the location of the nephridial tubercles on the feet of the fourth and fifth leg pairs. In E. horsti, this tubercle is located at the proximal border of the fourth pad rather than in the middle of the fourth pad (as in E. butleri, E. sumatranus, and E. weldoni) or between the third and fourth pads, indenting the third pad (as in E. totoro). [7]

Related Research Articles

<i>Peripatus</i> Genus of velvet worms

Peripatus is a genus of velvet worms in the Peripatidae family. The name "peripatus" is also used to refer to the Onychophora as a whole, although this group comprises many other genera besides Peripatus. The genus Peripatus is found in Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America. This genus is viviparous, with mothers supplying nourishment to their embryos through a placenta.

<i>Peripatoides suteri</i> Species of velvet worm

Peripatoides suteri is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. Like all other species in the genus Peripatoides, this species is ovoviviparous and endemic to New Zealand. This species is notable for featuring 16 pairs of legs, unlike all other species of Peripatoides, which have only 15 leg pairs. This species has more legs than any other species of velvet worm found in New Zealand.

<i>Typhloperipatus</i> Genus and species of velvet worm

Typhloperipatus is a genus of velvet worm in the family Peripatidae, containing the sole species Typhloperipatus williamsoni. This genus contains the only species in the phylum Onychophora found in South Asia. This species is also striking in that this velvet worm shows no external trace of eyes, although rudimentary optical vesicles are present internally. This species is also notable for featuring males with the minimum number of legs recorded in any velvet worm in the family Peripatidae.

<i>Eoperipatus</i> Genus of velvet worms

Eoperipatus is a genus of velvet worms in the family Peripatidae. These velvet worms have been reported from locations throughout Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. This genus exhibits lecithotrophic ovoviviparity; that is, mothers in this genus retain yolky eggs in their uteri.

<i>Epiperipatus</i> Genus of velvet worms

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. This genus is viviparous, with mothers supplying nourishment to their embryos through a placenta.

<i>Eoperipatus totoro</i> Species of velvet worm

Eoperipatus totoro is a species of velvet worm of the family Peripatidae. This species is notable as the first velvet worm from Vietnam to be formally described. As of 2024, E. totoro remains the only species of velvet worm from Vietnam to be described.

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.

Eoperipatus weldoni is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. This velvet worm is dark brown with pale spots and a darker line running down the middle of its back. The ventral surface is yellowish grey with small spots of brown. This species has 23 to 25 pairs of legs and can reach 65 mm in length, but the average specimen is 58 mm in length. The type locality is in West Malaysia.

Epiperipatus cratensis is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatidae. This species is found in northeastern Brazil. This velvet worm is notable as a small species of Epiperipatus with many legs.

Epiperipatus hilkae is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. This species is found in Costa Rica. This velvet worm is closely related to another species of Epiperipatus found in Costa Rica, E. isthmicola. The species E. hilkae is named in honor of the German zoologist Hilke Ruhberg for her extensive work on velvet worms.

Oroperipatus lankesteri is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. This velvet worm is notable for its large size, reaching 82 mm in length. This species is known only from its type locality in the northern Pacific lowlands of Ecuador.

Oroperipatus peruvianus is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. Males of this species have 34 pairs of legs; females have 36 or 37 pairs. This velvet worm is found in Peru.

Peripatus dominicae is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family. The type locality for this species is on the Caribbean island of Dominica. Although the Canadian zoologist Stewart Peck introduced the name Peripatus dominicae dominicae in 1975 to distinguish the original species from other subspecies then assigned to P. dominicae, authorities now deem these subspecies to be separate species in light of the significant distances between their type localities.

<i>Peripatus juanensis</i> Species of velvet worm

Peripatus juanensis is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatidae family discovered in Puerto Rico in 1900. As of 2018, it is the only velvet worm found in Puerto Rico. Females of this species have 31 or 32 pairs of legs; males have 27.

Paraperipatus keiensis is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. Females of this species have 24 or 25 pairs of legs; males have 22 or 23 leg pairs. The type locality is in Kai Besar in Indonesia.

Peripatopsis sedgwicki is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. Also known as the Tsitsikamma velvet worm, this species has a narrow geographic distribution in South Africa but is especially abundant in the indigenous forest of the Tsitsikamma mountains. Recent phylogenetic analysis using molecular data finds that Peripatopsis sedgwicki as traditionally understood based on morphology is a species complex that contains four different species: P. sedgwicki s.s., P. orientalis, P. collarium, and P. margaritarius.

Ooperipatellus nickmayeri is a species of oviparous velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. This species is larger than any other in the genus Ooperipatellus. With a body size exceeding 60 mm in females and 30 mm in males, these velvet worms can be more than twice as long as other species of this genus.

Epiperipatus hyperbolicus is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatidae. This velvet worm is known only from its type locality in the state of Alagoas in Brazil. The species name refers to the unusually large apical piece on the primary papillae on this velvet worm. This distinctive apical piece is notable for its size and spherical shape. The males of this species have 23 pairs of legs; females have 24 or 25 pairs.

Epiperipatus titanicus is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatidae. This velvet worm is known only from its type locality in the state of Alagoas in Brazil. The species name refers to the large size of its females and its numerous legs. This species features more legs than any other Brazilian species of velvet worm.

Opisthopatus camdebooi is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. Also known as the Camdeboo velvet worm, this species is endemic to the Camdeboo National Park in South Africa. This species is notable for adapting to an unlikely environment for the survival of velvet worms. This species was found in soil 30 cm beneath the surface in the Valley of Desolation in Camdeboo National Park in the Great Karoo, an arid region devoid of forests. Over millions of years, this velvet worm apparently adapted to an increasingly arid Karoo basin by taking refuge at higher altitudes and adopting a mode of life underground but near the surface. This species is the first velvet worm discovered in South Africa with such a near-surface mode of life.

References

  1. ↑ Oliveira I.; Hering L. & Mayer, G. "Updated Onychophora checklist". Onychophora Website. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  2. 1 2 Oliveira, I. S.; Read, V. M. S. J.; Mayer, G. (2012). "A world checklist of Onychophora (velvet worms), with notes on nomenclature and status of names". ZooKeys (211): 1–70 [4–5]. Bibcode:2012ZooK..211....1O. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.211.3463 . PMC   3426840 . PMID   22930648.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Evans, Richard (1901). "On two new species of Onychophora from the Siamese Malay States". Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science. 44: 473–538.
  4. 1 2 Bouvier, E.-L. (1905). "Monographie des Onychophores". Annales des Sciences Naturelles, Zoologie (in French). 9 (2): 1–383 [269] – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  5. 1 2 Kloss, C. Boden (1926). "Peripatus in the Malay Peninsula". Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 4 (1(96)): 167. ISSN   2304-7550.
  6. ↑ Monge-Nájera, Julián (1994). "Reproductive trends, habitat type and body characteristcs in velvet worms (Onychophora)". Revista de Biología Tropical. 42 (3): 611–622. ISSN   2215-2075.
  7. 1 2 Oliveira, Ivo de Sena; Schaffer, Stefan; Kvartalnov, Pavel V.; Galoyan, Eduard A.; Palko, Igor V.; Weck-Heimann, Andreas; Geissler, Peter; Ruhberg, Hilke; Mayer, Georg (2013-06-01). "A new species of Eoperipatus (Onychophora) from Vietnam reveals novel morphological characters for the South-East Asian Peripatidae". Zoologischer Anzeiger. 252 (4): 495–510 [507]. doi:10.1016/j.jcz.2013.01.001. ISSN   0044-5231.
  8. ↑ Oliveira, Ivo de Sena; Franke, Franziska Anni; Hering, Lars; Schaffer, Stefan; Rowell, David M.; Weck-Heimann, Andreas; Monge-Nájera, Julián; Morera-Brenes, Bernal; Mayer, Georg (2012-12-17). "Unexplored Character Diversity in Onychophora (Velvet Worms): A Comparative Study of Three Peripatid Species". PLOS ONE. 7 (12): e51220 [18]. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...751220O. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0051220 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   3524137 . PMID   23284667.
  9. ↑ Oliveira, Ivo de Sena (2023-11-16). "An updated world checklist of velvet worms (Onychophora) with notes on nomenclature and status of names". ZooKeys (1184): 133–260. Bibcode:2023ZooK.1184..133O. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.1184.107286 . ISSN   1313-2970. PMC   10680090 . PMID   38023768.
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