Tasmanipatus barretti
Tasmanipatus barretti, the giant velvet worm, is a species of velvet worm in the Peripatopsidae family.[1] It is the sole species in the genus Tasmanipatus[2] and is ovoviviparous.[3]
| Tasmanipatus barretti | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Onychophora |
| Class: | Udeonychophora |
| Order: | Euonychophora |
| Family: | Peripatopsidae |
| Genus: | Tasmanipatus Ruhberg et al. 1991 |
| Species: | T. barretti |
| Binomial name | |
| Tasmanipatus barretti Ruhberg et al. 1991 | |
 | |
| Map of Tasmania with the distribution Tasmanipatus barretti in pink | |
| Synonyms | |
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Taxonomy
Tasmanipatus barretti was described by Ruhberg et al. in 1991. The generic name Tasmanipatus refers to the species' distribution in Tasmania, Australia. The specific name barretti refers to Australian naturalist Charles Leslie Barrett, who was sent a specimen from St Marys. Barrett is thought to have published the first record of the species, though he did not recognise it as a new species.[4]
Morphology
The dorsal surface is mauve with a darker median stripe. The ventral surface is creamy-white. There are 15 pairs of oncopods (legs). Adults are typically 35–40 mm long, but may extend to 75 mm while walking.[4] The common name refers to its size, which is large among the Peripatopsidae; however, much larger velvet worms exist in the Peripatidae (see Mongeperipatus solorzanoi).
References
- Oliveira, I. S.; Hering, L. & Mayer, G. "Updated Onychophora checklist". Onychophora Website. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- Oliveira, Ivo de Sena; Ruhberg, Hilke; Rowell, David M.; Mayer, Georg (2018-08-16). "Revision of Tasmanian viviparous velvet worms (Onychophora : Peripatopsidae) with descriptions of two new species". Invertebrate Systematics. 32 (4): 909–932. doi:10.1071/IS17096. ISSN 1447-2600. S2CID 91253450.
- Baker, Caitlin M; Buckman-Young, Rebecca S; Costa, Cristiano S; Giribet, Gonzalo (2021-12-09). Xia, Xuhua (ed.). "Phylogenomic Analysis of Velvet Worms (Onychophora) Uncovers an Evolutionary Radiation in the Neotropics". Molecular Biology and Evolution. 38 (12): 5391–5404. doi:10.1093/molbev/msab251. ISSN 1537-1719. PMC 8662635. PMID 34427671.
- Ruhberg, H.; Mesibov, R.; Briscoe, D. A.; Tait, N. N. (1991). "Tasmanipatus barretti gen. nov., sp. nov. and Tasmanipatus anophthalmus sp. no.: two new and unusual onychophorans (Onychophora: Peripatopsidae) from northeastern Tasmania". Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania. 125: 7–10. doi:10.26749/rstpp.125.7.