Velvet worm

Velvet worms
A member of the Peripatidae family
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Superphylum:	Ecdysozoa
(unranked):	Panarthropoda
Phylum:	Onychophora

The velvet worms (Onychophora — literally "claw bearers") are a minor panarthropod phylum.

There are two families and about 200 species. All living species live on land, in moist or wet tropical areas.

The two living families are the Peripatidae and the Peripatopsidae. They show a peculiar distribution, with the peripatids being mainly equatorial and tropical, while the peripatopsids are all found in what used to be Gondwana.^[1]

The segmented worm-like organisms have tiny eyes, "fur", antennae, multiple pairs of legs, and, slime glands. The group is thought to be related to arthropods. They prey on smaller animals such as insects, which they catch by squirting a sticky slime.

1. ↑ Piper, Ross 2007. Extraordinary animals: an encyclopedia of curious and unusual animals. Greenwood Press.