A new and critically endangered species and genus of Onychophora (Peripatidae) from the Brazilian savannah – a vulnerable biodiversity hotspot

Oliveira, Ivo de Sena; Lacorte, Gustavo Augusto; Weck-Heimann, Andreas; Cordeiro, None Lívia Medeiros; Wieloch, Alfredo Hannemann; Mayer, Georg

doi:10.1080/14772000.2014.985621

Cited by 17 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 61 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…burmiticus, those originally presented for this fossil species, and those available for other extant onychophorans (see Supplemental Information for further details). Using the exclusive anterior position of the nephridial tubercle on the fourth and fifth leg pairs and the typical reduction in the number of spinous pads in posterior leg pairs as morphological landmarks [12][13][14], we suggest that the incomplete holotype of yC. burmiticus was originally misinterpreted as the anterior, while it in fact represents the posterior half of the animal.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Topotypes in yellow Burmese amber ( Figure 1); BU-001467 (nearly complete albeit suboptimally preserved adult; undefined sex); BU-001468 (exceptionally preserved anterior half of an adult; undefined sex) and ZZZ0066 (complete albeit suboptimally preserved juvenile; undefined sex). Emended Diagnosis yCretoperipatus burmiticus exhibits the following unique combination of characters: basal piece of dorsal primary papillae composed of two lateral and five anterior or posterior scale ranks ( Figure 2E); apical piece asymmetrical, with three anterior and two posterior scale ranks ( Figure 2E); distal-and proximal-most spinous pads of the legs shorter than the two in between, the proximal-most one being thinner than the others ( Figure 3C); nephridial tubercle located in the third pad, splitting it into two unequal parts (arrowhead in Figure 3D); apical collar of type I crater-shaped papillae bearing eight scales ( Figure 3F); ventral fields of modified scales [12] or interpedal structures [13,14] absent. Differential Diagnosis Herein, yC.…”

Section: Referred Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Earliest Onychophoran in Amber Reveals Gondwanan Migration Patterns

et al. 2016

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The anomalous occurrence of supposedly Gondwanan taxa in Laurasian-derived regions remains an intriguing chapter of paleobiogeographical history. Representatives of Peripatidae, a major subgroup of velvet worms (Onychophora), show a disjointed distribution in the neotropics, tropical Africa, and Southeast Asia, the latter being the only landmass previously associated with Laurasia [1, 2]. The arrival of these animals in Southeast Asia is explained by two alternative, albeit not mutually exclusive, hypotheses: an early migration via Europe before continental drift (Eurogondwana hypothesis) or transportation via insular India during the Cretaceous and Paleogene ("out-of-India" hypothesis) [3-6]. The latter hypothesis is based on a single extant species of Peripatidae, Typhloperipatus williamsoni, in India. †Cretoperipatus burmiticus from Myanmar is the oldest fossil onychophoran found in amber [7], dating to sometime between the two proposed scenarios, and hence crucial for clarifying how Gondwanan lineages of these low-vagility animals reached Southeast Asia (see also Supplemental Information). Based on the anatomical reconstruction of †C. burmiticus using synchrotron radiation-based X-ray microtomography (SRμCT) and comparisons with extant taxa, we resolved this fossil species within Onychophora, particularly within Peripatidae, with T. williamsoni as its closest extant relative. This suggests that an early Eurogondwanan migration of peripatids was the most likely event, as Burmese amber is too old to be compatible with the out-of-India hypothesis. Moreover, peripatids probably colonized India only recently from Myanmar, refuting the putative Gondwanan relict status of Indian onychophorans. Finally, preservation artifacts identified in the novel amber material might have a major impact on studies of onychophoran stem and/or crown groups.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Referred Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Earliest Onychophoran in Amber Reveals Gondwanan Migration Patterns

et al. 2016

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Currently, while there are no conservation studies for most of the nearly 200 named species of velvet worms, the IUCN considers four in critical danger (in South Africa and Brazil), two endangered (in Tasmania and Jamaica), four vulnerable (in South Africa and New Zealand) and one in low risk (in Jamaica), mainly from habitat loss (Oliveira et al, 2015;IUCN 2018). The Estacão Ecológica do Tripuí in Minas Gerais, Brazil, was created in part to protect Peripatus acacioi (http://www.wikiparques.org) and efforts to conserve an undescribed urban species were also done in Dunedin, New Zealand, with a strong citizen participation (Monge-Nájera & Morera-Brenes, 2015; Barret et al, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite the long survival of the phylum, velvet worms should be taken into account in conservation programs because individual species have tiny populations and are endangered in unprotected forest fragments, like Cerradopatus sucuriuensis, and in caves, like Speleopenpatus spelaeus (Peck, 1975;New, 1995;Oliveira et al, 2015). Three species, Peripatopsis leonina, Peripatopsis clavigera and Opisthopatus roseus, have already become extinct from habitat loss (Newlands & Ruhberg, 1978).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The conservation status of Costa Rican velvet worms (Onychophora): geographic pattern, risk assessment and comparison with New Zealand velvet worms

Morera-Brenes

Mónge-Nájera

Mora

2019

URJ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction: Charismatic species, like the panda, play an important role in conservation, and velvet worms arguably are charismatic worms. Thanks to their extraordinary hunting mechanism, they have inspired from a female metal band in Japan, to origami worms in Russia and video game monsters in the USA. Objective: To assess their conservation status in Costa Rica (according to data in the UNA Onychophora Database) and compare it with equivalent data from elsewhere. Methods: we located all collection records of the 29 species in the map of the Costa Rican Conservation Network. Results: We found that seven species are protected inside Forest Reserves, five in Protected Zones, four in Wildlife Refuges, two in National Parks and one, Principapillatus hitoyensis, in a strictly pristine Biological Reserve. The largest species in the world, Peripatus solorzanoi, occurs both inside a Forest Reserve and in protected private land. Protection inside Costa Rican nature areas is enforced year-round by personnel that includes armed guards and is supported by educational programs in surrounding communities. Twelve species have not been found in protected areas, but in Costa Rica, all biological species, named and unnamed, are protected by law and cannot be legally collected, or exported, without technically issued permits. Conclusion: Like in the only other country with similar information (New Zealand), the conservation of onychophorans seems to be of least concern for at least two thirds of the known Costa Rican species. Epiperipatus isthmicola, recently rediscovered after a century of absence in collections, can be considered Threatened because nearly all of its natural habitat has now been covered by a city.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The conservation status of Costa Rican velvet worms (Onychophora)

Morera-Brenes

Mónge-Nájera

Carrera-Mora

2018

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Charismatic species, like the panda, play an important role in conservation, and velvet worms arguably are charismatic worms. Thanks to their extraordinary hunting mechanism, they have inspired from a female metal band in Japan, to origami worms in Russia and video game monsters in the USA. Objective: To assess their conservation status in Costa Rica. Methods: we located all collection records of the 29 known species from the Onychophora Database in the map of the Costa Rican Conservation Network. Results: We found that seven species are protected inside forest reserves, five in Protected Zones, four in Wildlife Refuges, two in National Parks and one, Principapillatus hitoyensis, in a strictly pristine Biological Reserve. The largest species in the world, Peripatus solorzanoi, occurs both inside a Forest Reserve and in protected private land. Protection inside Costa Rican nature areas is enforced year round by personnel that includes armed guards, and is supported by educational programs in surrounding communities. Twelve species have not been found in protected areas, but in Costa Rica, all biological species, named and unnamed, are protected by law and cannot be legally collected, or exported, without technically issued permits. Conclusion: Like in the only other country with similar information (New Zealand), the conservation of onychophorans seems to be of least concern for at least two thirds of the known species. Epiperipatus isthmicola, recently rediscovered after a century of absence in collections, can be considered Threatened because nearly all of its natural habitat has now been covered by a city.

show abstract

A new and critically endangered species and genus of Onychophora (Peripatidae) from the Brazilian savannah – a vulnerable biodiversity hotspot

Cited by 17 publications

References 61 publications

Earliest Onychophoran in Amber Reveals Gondwanan Migration Patterns

Earliest Onychophoran in Amber Reveals Gondwanan Migration Patterns

The conservation status of Costa Rican velvet worms (Onychophora): geographic pattern, risk assessment and comparison with New Zealand velvet worms

The conservation status of Costa Rican velvet worms (Onychophora)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About