English: Velvet worms; Claw bearers.
Clades:
Ecdysozoa.
Families: Peripatidae; Peripatopsidae.
Members: ± 60 genera; ± 200 species.
Region: Southern Hemisphere.
Habitat: tropical.
ZoologyOnychophora are worms with legs; obscurely segmented; have tiny eyes, antennae, multiple pairs of legs and slime glands; compared to worms with legs, caterpillars and slugs; prey on insects by squirting an adhesive mucus, a sticky slime; curious mating behaviour; bearing live young.