''Metaperipatus'' is a genus of

velvet worms 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 family Peripatopsidae that includes the species ''Metaperipatus inae''. Males of this species have 20 pairs of legs; females have 22 pairs. This species is a dark grayish blue in color, with large orange/red spots. When walking, females of this species can be as long as 85 mm, and males can be as long as 60 mm. The type locality is in central Chile. A second species assigned to this genus, ''M. blainvillei'' (Gervais, 1837), includes females with 20 to 22 pairs of legs and males with 19 to 22, but ''M. blainvillei'' is considered a ''

nomen dubium In binomial nomenclature, a ''nomen dubium'' (Latin for "doubtful name", plural ''nomina dubia'') is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application. Zoology In case of a ''nomen dubium'' it may be impossible to determine whether a s ...

'' by Oliveira et al., 2012, because it is probably a species complex. Velvet worms in this genus exhibit

matrotrophic Matrotrophy is a form of maternal care during organism development, associated with live birth (viviparity), in which the embryo of an animal or flowering plant is supplied with additional nutrition from the mother (e.g. through a placenta). This ...

viviparity, that is, mothers in this genus retain eggs in their uteri and supply nourishment to their embryos, but without any placenta.

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