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| Typhloperipatus williamsoni Kemp, 1913 in Narayanan, Priyadarsanan, Ranjith, Sahanashree et Ananthram, 2025. |
ABSTRACT
Typhloperipatus williamsoni, a long-lost species of the phylum Onychophora (velvet worms), is rediscovered after over a century in the Siang Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, India. The rediscovery is based on two individuals, one collected near the type locality (Kalek, Arunachal Pradesh, India) and the other from a previously unknown location (Yingku, Arunachal Pradesh, India). We provide additional natural history and distribution information about this poorly known species, and the first live images. Molecular data for T. williamsoni is generated for the first time to understand its phylogenetic position within Peripatidae. The phylogenetic analyses based on three mitochondrial genes (12S, 16S and COI) recovered T. williamsoni as a sister to Southeast Asian Eoperipatus. Further, the biogeographic scenario of Asian peripatids is briefly discussed based on the molecular dating analysis.
KEYWORDS: Velvet worms, Siang expedition, natural history, molecular analysis, biogeography
Typhloperipatus williamsoni Kemp, 1913
Surya Narayanan, D.R. Priyadarsanan, A.P. Ranjith, R. Sahanashree and Aravind Neelavar Ananthram. 2025. Rediscovery and Phylogenetic Position of A Long-lost Typhloperipatus williamsoni Kemp, 1913 (Onychophora: Peripatidae) after 111 Years from Arunachal Pradesh, India. Journal of Natural History. 59(17-20); 1167-1180. DOI: doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2025.2483434 [11 Apr 2025]
