''Paraperipatus lorentzi'' is a species of

velvet worm Onychophora (from grc, ονυχής, , "claws"; and , , "to carry"), commonly known as velvet worms (due to their velvety texture and somewhat wormlike appearance) or more ambiguously as peripatus (after the first described genus, '' Peripatus ...

in the

Peripatopsidae Peripatopsidae is one of the two living velvet worm families. Description The Peripatopsidae exhibit relatively many characteristics that are perceived as original or "primitive" with respect to the Peripatidae. The number of leg pairs in this ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

. This species is a dark green-blue. Females of this species have 22 to 28 pairs of legs; males have 21 or 22 pairs of legs. Whereas the original description of this species records 19 mm as the length of a male specimen, females range from 33 mm to 60 mm in length. The type locality is in

Western New Guinea Western New Guinea, also known as Papua, Indonesian New Guinea, or Indonesian Papua, is the western half of the Melanesian island of New Guinea which is administered by Indonesia. Since the island is alternatively named as Papua, the region ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. The validity of this species is uncertain: Although some authorities deem ''P. lorentzi'' to be a junior synonym of '' P. papuensis'', a similar species also found in Western New Guinea, others recognize them as two separate species.

References

Onychophorans of Australasia Onychophoran species Animals described in 1910 {{Onychophora-stub