Typhloperipatus Williamsoni

Prelims – Current events of national importance| General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity.

Mains (GS III) – Conservation.

Why in News?

A group of scientists has announced the rediscovery of a long-forgotten species of velvet worms (phylum Onychophora), which are among the oldest living fossils on the planet, after a gap of 111 years.

• It is an ancient velvet worm species (phylum Onychophora), one of the oldest living fossils in the world.

• First discovered in - December 1911 in Siang Valley.
  • After that there have been no documented records of it from India.
• The molecular analysis of T. williamsoni revealed that South Asian onychophoras diverged from their
  • Neotropical counterparts, those found in Central and South America, as well as
  • Southern Mexico and the Caribbean approximately 237 million years ago.
• Notably, it was discovered that Asian onychophoras lack any relatives among the Australian species.
• This finding is particularly striking, as invertebrates from Southeast Asia and India typically share connections with those in Australia.
• Asian onychophora stands out as one of the rare exceptions to this relationship.

Reference

The Hindu | Typhloperipatus williamsoni