Opisthopatus

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Opisthopatus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Onychophora
Family: Peripatopsidae
Genus: Opisthopatus
Purcell, 1899
Species
See text

Opisthopatus is a genus of South African velvet worms in the family Peripatopsidae. [1] [2] 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. [3] 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. [4]

Contents

Description

Color is highly variable in this genus, both among and within species. [5] 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. [6] The feet in this genus feature three distal leg papillae: one anterior, one posterior, and one median. [7] The genital opening is located between the last pair of legs. [5] The male genitalia feature a cruciform opening and four pads; the female genitalia feature a longitudinal opening. [6]

Reproduction

Mothers in this genus give birth to live young. [8] In particular, 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. [9] The young are born tail first, one or two at a time. The young resemble adults in form but are smaller. [7]

Species

The genus contains the following species: [1]

Related Research Articles

Opisthopatus roseus is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. As traditionally defined, this species is rose pink with 18 pairs of legs. Known as the pink velvet worm, it is found only in the Weza Forest, a Mistbelt Forest in South Africa.

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

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peripatopsidae</span> Family of invertebrate animals

Peripatopsidae is one of the two living velvet worm families. 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.

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.

Opisthopatus cinctipes is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. This species has 16 pairs of legs, all with claws and all used for walking. The color of the dorsal surface varies from blue to olive green. Females range from 7 mm to 50 mm in length, whereas males range from 6 mm to 36 mm. Like other velvet worms in this genus, this species exhibits matrotrophic viviparity, that is, mothers in this genus retain eggs in their uteri and supply nourishment to their embryos, but without any placenta. The type locality is in South Africa.

Opisthopatus amatolensis is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. This species has 16 pairs of legs. The type locality is in South Africa. The validity of this species is uncertain: Although some authorities deem O. amatolensis to be invalid even as a subspecies of O. cinctipes, a similar species also found in South Africa, other authorities recognize O. amatolensis as a separate species, citing the significant distance between the type localities of these two species.

Opisthopatus amaxhosa is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. This species is a clade in the O. cinctipes species complex. This species has 16 or 17 pairs of legs in both sexes and varies from light to dark pink on the dorsal surface and from dark to light brown on the ventral surface. Males of this species range from 12 mm to 14 mm in length. Also known as the Xhosa velvet worm, this species is found in the Eastern Cape province in South Africa.

Opisthopatus drakensbergi is a species of velvet worms in the family Peripatopsidae. This species is a clade in the O. cinctipes species complex. This species has 16 pairs of legs. Specimens are brown and slate black with a line down the middle of the back and a brown ventral surface. The original description of this species is based on a male holotype measuring 13 mm in length. This species is found at high altitude in the forests of the Drakensberg mountains in KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa.

Opisthopatus highveldi is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. This species is a clade in the O. cinctipes species complex. This species has 16 pairs of legs and varies in color from brown to black to indigo. The original description of this species is based on two holotypes ranging from 16 mm to 17 mm in length. Also known as the Highveld velvet worm, this species is found in indigenous forest patches along the Highveld in Mpumalanga province in South Africa.

Opisthopatus laevis is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. This species has 16 pairs of legs. The type locality is in South Africa. The validity of this species is uncertain: Some authorities consider O. laevis invalid even as a subspecies of O. cinctipes, a similar species also found in South Africa, but other authorities recognize O. laevis as a separate species, citing the significant distance (570 km) between the type localities of these two species.

Opisthopatus natalensis is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. This species has 16 pairs of legs. The type locality is in South Africa. The validity of this species is uncertain: Although some authorities have deemed O. natalensis to be a subspecies of O. cinctipes, a similar species also found in South Africa, and others regard O. natalensis as invalid even as a subspecies, still other authorities recognize O. natalensis as a separate species, citing the significant distance between the type localities of these two species.

Peripatopsis balfouri is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. This species has 18 pairs of clawed legs. Also known as the blue velvet worm, this species ranges from 9 mm to 22 mm in length. The type locality is in South Africa.

<i>Peripatopsis capensis</i> Species of velvet worm

Peripatopsis capensis is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. This species has 18 pairs of legs: 17 pregenital leg pairs with claws plus one strongly reduced last pair without claws or spinous pads. Females of this species range from 9 mm to 70 mm in length, whereas males range from 6 mm to 54 mm. The native range of this species is limited to the Cape Peninsula of South Africa.

Peripatopsis hamerae is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. This species is a clade in the P. moseleyi species complex. The original description of this species is based on one specimen of each sex, each measuring 22 mm in length with a black dorsal surface and creamy white ventral surface. The male of this species has 22 pairs of pregenital legs and one pair of genital legs; the female has 23 pairs of pregenital legs and one pair of genital legs. Also known as the Kamala velvet worm, this species is known only from Groot Bruintjieshoogte in South Africa.

<i>Peripatopsis lawrencei</i> Species of velvet worm

Peripatopsis lawrencei is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. This species has 17 pairs of legs, with the last pair reduced in size but featuring two claws on each leg. This species is restricted to the Theewaterskloof-Overstrand region of South Africa.

<i>Peripatopsis moseleyi</i> Species of velvet worm

Peripatopsis moseleyi is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. Males of this species have 20 to 24 pairs of legs with claws ; females have 19 to 23 pairs of legs with claws. Females range from 11 mm to 75 mm in length, whereas males range from 9 mm to 50 mm. The type locality is in South Africa.

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.

Opisthopatus herbertorum is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family. The type locality is in South Africa. As originally described, this species is uniformly white with 17 pairs of legs. Subsequent phylogenetic results, however, cast doubt on this species delimitation based on morphology, indicating instead that O. herbertorum is a junior synonym of O. roseus.

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.

Peripatopsis aereus is a species of velvet worm in the family Peripatopsidae. This species is known only from the Riviersonderend Mountains in South Africa. This velvet worm was discovered living in sympatry with another species in the same genus, P. lawrencei. These two sympatric species can be distinguished based on the number of legs: The species P. aereus has 18 pairs of legs, whereas the species P. lawrencei has only 17 leg pairs.

References

  1. 1 2 Oliveira I.; Hering L. & Mayer G. "Updated Onychophora checklist". Onychophora Website. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  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. Bibcode:2012ZooK..211....1O. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.211.3463 . PMC   3426840 . PMID   22930648.
  3. ↑ Barnes, Aaron; Daniels, Savel R. (2022). "Refining species boundaries among velvet worms (Onychophora, Peripatopsidae), with the description of two new species of Opisthopatus from South Africa". Invertebrate Biology. 141 (2): 2. doi:10.1111/ivb.12368. ISSN   1077-8306.
  4. ↑ Purcell, W F; Purcell, W. F. (1899). "On the South African species of Peripatidae in the collection of the South African Museum". Annals of the South African Museum. Annale van die Suid-Afrikaanse Museum. 1: 331–351 [349]. doi: 10.5962/bhl.part.13902 .
  5. 1 2 Ruhberg, Hilke (1985). Die Peripatopsidae (Onychophora) : Systematik, Ökologie, Chorologie und phylogenetische Aspekte (in German). Stuttgart: E. Schweizerbart. pp. 81–82. ISBN   3-510-55023-4. OCLC   14872354.
  6. 1 2 Daniels, Savel R.; Dambire, Charlene; Klaus, Sebastian; Sharma, Prashant P. (2016). "Unmasking alpha diversity, cladogenesis and biogeographical patterning in an ancient panarthropod lineage (Onychophora: Peripatopsidae: Opisthopatus cinctipes ) with the description of five novel species". Cladistics. 32 (5): 506–537. doi: 10.1111/cla.12154 . PMID   34727674. S2CID   49525550.
  7. 1 2 Hamer, M.L.; Samways, M.J.; Ruhberg, H. (1997). "A review of the Onychophora of South Africa, with discussion of their conservation". Annals of the Natal Museum. 38 (1): 283–312 [285, 289].
  8. ↑ Mayer, Georg; Bartolomaeus, Thomas & Ruhberg, Hilke (2005). "Ultrastructure of mesoderm in embryos of Opisthopatus roseus (Onychophora, Peripatopsidae): Revision of the 'long germ band' hypothesis for Opisthopatus". Journal of Morphology. 263 (1): 60–70. doi:10.1002/jmor.10289. PMID   15536644. S2CID   33663506.
  9. ↑ Mayer, Georg; Franke, Franziska Anni; Treffkorn, Sandra; Gross, Vladimir; de Sena Oliveira, Ivo (2015), Wanninger, Andreas (ed.), "Onychophora", Evolutionary Developmental Biology of Invertebrates 3, Vienna: Springer Vienna, pp. 53–98, doi:10.1007/978-3-7091-1865-8_4, ISBN   978-3-7091-1864-1 , retrieved 2023-02-15


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