PHYLUM

ARTHROPODA
SALLY T. LIMPIN
MAIS-ASE
 Class Onychopora
Also called velvet worms.
Segmented animals with a flattened cylindrical
body cross-section.
Onychophorans are soft-bodied, worm-like
invertebrates that have been considered an
intermediate link between annelids and
arthropods, although it appears they are more
closely related to arthropods.
Phylogeny (history)
They have been believed to have evolved from
the same ancestor as arthropods.
 Has been dated back to the Cambrian period.
Body Features
Terrestrial, carnivorous and free living animals.
Body elongated more or less cylindrical and is
bilaterally symmetrical.
Head is not clearly differentiated.
Body surface covered by a chitinous cuticle that
is thin, flexible and permeable and is not divided
into articulating plates. The chitinous cuticle is
periodically mounted.
A tubular heart, open at each end and provided
with a pair of lateral ostia in each segment. Blood
is colorless.
Gas exchange organs are tracheas that are
simple, tubular, forming tufts arising from
numerous small spiracles.
Some onychophorans are oviparous, but many
brood their eggs internally and give birth to
young ones.
Habitat
All currently living onychophoran species are
terrestrial, although the fossil record shows they
were likely aquatic at some point, the shift to
land probably took place during the Ordovician
period.
They are nocturnal and photonegative, living
primarily in dark, moist microhabitats such as
forest litter and soil, within bromeliads, or in rotten
logs.
 Behavior
Onychophorans are typically solitary; they are also
photonegative and nocturnal.
They are most active in humid and damp
environments; activity greatly decreases during dry
periods.
Onychophorans move using their lopodal legs and
extending and contracting their bodies using
hydrostatic forces.
Interaction
Lifespan/Longevity
Onychophorans typically live several years;
females are not known to reproduce until
reaching at least 1.4 years of age.
 Reproduction
Mating behavior has seldom been observed and
seems to vary widely among species. Both dermal
and vaginal inseminations are known.
Males of some species have specialized head
structures with which they transfer a
spermatophore directly to a female's genital
opening; during the transfer, a male is held in
place by the female's lodopod claws.
Anatomy
The body is caterpillar-like, encased in a thin
chitinous cuticle. The anterior end is indicated by
the antennae and by the ventrally directed
mouth, while the posterior end, projecting
behind the last pair of walking legs, bears the
terminal anus.
enigmatic small elongated wormlike terrestrial
invertebrates of damp dark habitats in warm
regions; distinct from the phylum Annelida; resembl
e slugs with legs and are sometimes described as
the missing link between arthropods and annelid.
 soft-bodied, worm-like invertebrates that have
been considered an intermediate link between
annelids and arthropods, although it appears
they are more closely related to arthropods.
 Their worm-like body is not obviously segmented

like annelids.
 Class Symphyla
Also known as GARDEN CENTIPEDE
They are soil-dwelling arthropods, but are smaller.
They are less than 10 millimeters long.
also called symphylid, any of a group of insects
that are often included with the centipedes
(Chilopoda) and millipedes (Diplopoda) in the
superclass Myriapoda of the subphylum Labiata.
Physical Characteristics
. This species measures 0.19 to 0.31 inches
(5 to 8 millimeters) in length.
Their bodies are whitish or light brownish.
They are impossible to identify without
examination through a microscope
GEOGRAPHIC RANGE
Symphylans are found on all continents
except Antarctica. There are about two
hundred species worldwide. The species in
the United States and Canada are so poorly
studied that it is not known just how many
species there are.
Reproduction
Males and females are both required for
reproduction. Males deposit sperm packets
on the ground. The females later pick up
the sperm packets in their mouths. Nothing
else is known about their
courtship behavior or how they might
communicate or interact with each other.
Females deposit up to twenty-five pearly-white
eggs in a mass. The hatchlings have fewer body
segments than adults and only six or seven pairs
of legs.
They are very inactive. Each time they molt, or
shed their exoskeleton or hard outer covering,
they will add an additional segment and pair of
legs until they reach adulthood with twelve pairs.
BEHAVIOR
Symphylans are usually found in large numbers
and sometimes gather in groups. They move up
and down in the soil to maintain the proper
moisture levels in their surroundings.
Their antennae move constantly as they move
about searching for food and mates, but they
are held back over the body when feeding.
Symphylans run swiftly, especially when
threatened.
CONSERVATION STATUS
No symphylan is considered endangered
or threatened. However, symphylans are
not very well known, and it is possible that
species found only in limited areas could
be vulnerable to extinction if their habitats
were spoiled or destroyed.
DIET
Symphylans eat mainly roots and root like
structures of funguses, but most species are
probably omnivorous, or animals that feed on
both plant and animal materials.
 HABITAT
 Symphylans live in the upper 3.2 foot (1 meter)
layers of soil in both natural and agricultural
habitats.
 They prefer moist but not wet soils.
 This species lives in leaf litter and rich soil. It is
also found in agricultural fields and greenhouses.
SYMPHYLANS AND PEOPLE
Symphylans are small, secretive animals that do
not bite or sting and are largely unknown to the
public. Garden symphylans damage crops such
as pineapple, beets, potatoes, beans, and many
others. They are sometimes a pest in
greenhouses.
This species is sometimes a serious pest in fields,
gardens, and greenhouses and hothouses.