﻿PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  TME 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  NATIONAL 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  iistiej 
  ''- 
  ''' 
  - 
  ' 
  "a^l 
  hy 
  the 
  

  

  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION 
  

  

  U. 
  S. 
  NATIONAL 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  Vol. 
  96 
  Wa.hington: 
  1946 
  No. 
  3197 
  

  

  THE 
  ONYCHOPHORES 
  OF 
  PANAMA 
  AND 
  THE 
  

   CANAL 
  ZONE 
  

  

  By 
  Austin 
  H. 
  Clark 
  and 
  James 
  Zetek 
  

  

  For 
  the 
  past 
  dozen 
  years 
  the 
  junior 
  author 
  has 
  been 
  interested 
  in 
  

   colli'ctin'4 
  and 
  obsorvinj]: 
  the 
  several 
  species 
  of 
  Onychophora 
  occurring 
  

   in 
  Panama 
  and 
  the 
  Canal 
  Zone. 
  He 
  sent 
  to 
  Hie 
  senior 
  author 
  a 
  

   collection 
  including 
  82 
  specimens 
  from 
  various 
  localities, 
  among 
  which 
  

   were 
  representatives 
  of 
  all 
  but 
  one 
  (Peripatus 
  ruber) 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  

   recorded 
  from 
  the 
  region; 
  this 
  omission, 
  however, 
  was 
  more 
  than 
  

   compensated 
  by 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  two 
  species 
  {Oroperipatus 
  eisenii 
  and 
  

   Epiperipatus 
  biolhyi) 
  not 
  previously 
  known 
  from 
  this 
  area, 
  although 
  

   the 
  first 
  has 
  been 
  rej^orLed 
  both 
  from 
  farther 
  north 
  and 
  from 
  farther 
  

   south. 
  

  

  The 
  number 
  of 
  species 
  of 
  Ouyc^hophora 
  now 
  known 
  from 
  Panama 
  

   and 
  the 
  Canal 
  Zone 
  is 
  unusually 
  large 
  for 
  a 
  region 
  of 
  such 
  limited 
  

   extent, 
  amounting 
  to 
  no 
  less 
  than 
  seven, 
  distributed 
  in 
  four 
  genera. 
  

   These 
  seven 
  species 
  are: 
  Oroprripntiis 
  eisfuii, 
  0. 
  corradi, 
  Macrnperi- 
  

   patus 
  gcayi, 
  Peripatus 
  ruber, 
  Eplpcripaius 
  brasilicnsis, 
  E. 
  edwardsii, 
  and 
  

   E. 
  biolleyi. 
  

  

  The 
  richest 
  locality 
  was 
  at 
  El 
  Cermeuo, 
  where 
  four 
  species, 
  Ornpcri- 
  

   pntufi 
  ei.Hfnii, 
  0. 
  corradi, 
  Iipiperijuilus 
  cdvdrdsii, 
  and 
  E. 
  bifdleyi, 
  were 
  

   found. 
  Here 
  the 
  coconut 
  habitat 
  was 
  the 
  most 
  productive, 
  and 
  they 
  

   were 
  ratlier 
  (•onimon. 
  These 
  j)ulms 
  were 
  not 
  more 
  than 
  5 
  years 
  old, 
  

   and 
  the 
  sheaths 
  of 
  the 
  fronds 
  wer(! 
  usually 
  a 
  foot 
  or 
  two 
  from 
  tiio 
  

   ground. 
  All 
  it 
  was 
  necessary 
  to 
  do 
  was 
  to 
  pull 
  off 
  these 
  dead 
  sheaths. 
  

  

  M8730— 
  40 
  205 
  

  

  