onychophoran

onychophoran
/on'i kof"euhr euhn/, n.
any small, predatory, caterpillarlike animal of the phylum Onychophora, common in tropical forests, having stubby legs ending in pincers.
[1885-90; < NL Onychophor(a) phylum name ( < Gk onycho-, comb. form of ónyx; see ONYX) + NL -phora, neut. pl. of -phorus -PHORE + -AN]

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Any of about 90 species of free-living terrestrial invertebrates in the class Onychophora (sometimes considered a phylum).

They are sometimes called velvet worms for their velvety skin. The common genus Peripatus occurs in the West Indies, Central America, and northern South America. Onychophorans are slender and segmented; each segment has a pair of short legs. Species range from 0.6 to 6 in. (14–150 mm) long. They live in humid, hidden spots: in forest litter, wood crevices, termite nests, or the soil, sometimes to a depth of more than 3 ft (1 m). They use their jaws to open captured prey (often small insects) and suck out the juices.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • onychophoran — n. Any of numerous velvety skinned wormlike carnivorous animals common in tropical forests having characteristics of both arthropods and annelid worms; a member of the Onychophora, also called Malacopoda. See {Malacopoda}. Syn: velvet worm,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • onychophoran — noun Etymology: New Latin Onychophora, group name, from Greek onych , onyx claw + phoros phore Date: circa 1890 peripatus • onychophoran adjective …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • onychophoran — noun Any of many wormlike carnivorous animals of the phylum Onychophora …   Wiktionary

  • onychophoran — [ˌɒnɪ kɒf(ə)r(ə)n] noun Zoology a terrestrial invertebrate of the small phylum Onychophora, which comprises the velvet worms. Origin from mod. L. Onychophora, from Gk onux, onukh nail, claw + phoros bearing …   English new terms dictionary

  • onychophoran — on·y·choph·oran …   English syllables

  • onychophoran — /ɒniˈkɒfərən/ (say onee kofuhruhn) noun 1. any of the caterpillar like animals of the genus Peripatus, subphylum Onychophora, having both arthropod and annelid characteristics. –adjective 2. of or relating to such an animal. {New Latin… …  

  • onychophoran — noun any of numerous velvety skinned wormlike carnivorous animals common in tropical forests having characteristics of both arthropods and annelid worms • Syn: ↑velvet worm, ↑peripatus • Hypernyms: ↑arthropod • Hyponyms: ↑Plicatoperipatus… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Onychophora — Temporal range: 40–0 Ma …   Wikipedia

  • Stummelfüßer — in der Region Bay of Plenty im Norden der neuseeländischen Nordinsel Systematik Unterreich: Vielzellige Tiere (Metazoa) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Arthropod head problem — The arthropod head problem is a long standing zoological dispute concerning the segmental composition of the heads of the various arthropod groups, and how they are evolutionarily related to each other. While the dispute has historically centered …   Wikipedia

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