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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