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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Ecology and Evolution

Predator Becomes Prey: Records of Intraguild Predation Between Velvet Worms (Onychophora) and Arthropods (Arthropoda) With an Expanded Review of Predation on Velvet Worms

  • Osvaldo Villarreal1,2
  • Leonardo Delgado‐Santa3
  • Luis F. García4
4 affiliations
  1. 1Centro de Ecología Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Científicas (IVIC) Altos de Pipe Edo. Miranda Venezuela
  2. 2Instituto y Museo del Instituto de Zoología Agrícola, Facultad de Agronomía Universidad Central de Venezuela Maracay Venezuela
  3. 3Grupo de Investigación Ecdysis, Programa de Biología Universidad del Quindío Armenia Colombia
  4. 4Polo Agroforestal, CENUR Noreste Universidad de la República Ciudad Rivera Uruguay
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Abstract

From 3954 citizen‐science observations screened, we report novel cases of predation by omnivorous arthropods on velvet worms, including the first confirmed records for harvestmen and a cave wētā. Using photographic evidence derived from citizen‐science observations, we document multiple predation events involving harvestmen (Opiliones: Cranaidae and Triaenonychidae) and a cave wētā (Orthoptera: Rhaphidophoridae), encompassing both intraguild predation and higher‐order opportunistic predation within cryptic terrestrial habitats. These interactions represent previously undocumented trophic links between phylogenetically distant lineages and expand the known repertoire of omnivorous arthropods as predators of onychophorans. Our findings document a previously unrecorded vulnerability in Onychophora, a group traditionally regarded as specialized predators defended by an adhesive slime system, and underscore the trophic flexibility of arthropod predators operating within leaf‐litter and subterranean ecosystems. Collectively, these observations document previously unrecorded trophic links in cryptic environments and illustrate the value of natural history data and citizen‐science platforms for detecting rarely documented interactions.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{villarreal2026predator,
  title = {{Predator Becomes Prey: Records of Intraguild Predation Between Velvet Worms (Onychophora) and Arthropods (Arthropoda) With an Expanded Review of Predation on Velvet Worms}},
  author = {Osvaldo Villarreal and Leonardo Delgado‐Santa and Luis F. García},
  journal = {Ecology and Evolution},
  year = {2026},
  month = nov,
  doi = {10.1002/ece3.74614},
  url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74614},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Predator Becomes Prey: Records of Intraguild Predation Between Velvet Worms (Onychophora) and Arthropods (Arthropoda) With an Expanded Review of Predation on Velvet Worms
AU  - Osvaldo Villarreal
AU  - Leonardo Delgado‐Santa
AU  - Luis F. García
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/11/04
JO  - Ecology and Evolution
DO  - 10.1002/ece3.74614
UR  - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74614
AB  - From 3954 citizen‐science observations screened, we report novel cases of predation by omnivorous arthropods on velvet worms, including the first confirmed records for harvestmen and a cave wētā. Using photographic evidence derived from citizen‐science observations, we document multiple predation events involving harvestmen (Opiliones: Cranaidae and Triaenonychidae) and a cave wētā (Orthoptera: Rhaphidophoridae), encompassing both intraguild predation and higher‐order opportunistic predation within cryptic terrestrial habitats. These interactions represent previously undocumented trophic links between phylogenetically distant lineages and expand the known repertoire of omnivorous arthropods as predators of onychophorans. Our findings document a previously unrecorded vulnerability in Onychophora, a group traditionally regarded as specialized predators defended by an adhesive slime system, and underscore the trophic flexibility of arthropod predators operating within leaf‐litter and subterranean ecosystems. Collectively, these observations document previously unrecorded trophic links in cryptic environments and illustrate the value of natural history data and citizen‐science platforms for detecting rarely documented interactions.
SN  - 2045-7758
SN  - 2045-7758
ER  -