Velvet Worms of the Calidocene

Velvet Worms, a strange and ancient phylum, increases in diversity in the Calidocene. The only species to survive the Holocene was the Euperipatoides rowelli, a species found in a small portion of Australia. Since the extinction, their range has expanded to include East Asia, Southeast Asia, Oceania and the coastal shadowforests.

Speworms

Speworms (exactivermis) are a genus of velvet worm found in East Asia. They measure in at 4-5 inches long and come in yellow and green. Their anatomy is unusual for a velvet worm, with their slime glands having moved to the front of the face and merging together to create a "slime turret". 

Their eyes are much larger and moved slightly forward. When they hunt, they aim their slime gland at their prey and contract it to fire. The slime fires in an arc rather than firing at random like their ancestors. The slime binds the legs and wings of their prey, leaving them to have their insides digested by the worm.

Unlike their ancestors, they are solitary. The males put out pheromones in the late fall that attract the females. When they mate, the female keeps the sperm stored in her body and can fertilize herself whenever she likes, increasing the survivability of the young. After the mother gives birth, she wraps herself around her young until they are ready to leave on their own. 

Freakworms

Freakworms (Diddyvermis) are a monotypic genus of velvet worm found in the coastal shadowforests. They come in at 2 inches long and they are white in coloration to deter predators. Their behavior is strange for velvet worms, being almost eusocial in nature. The groups live in underground nests, usually under rocks. Collectively, they are known as a "party".

The oldest adult females are deep inside the nest and produce the next generation. The adult males hunt with the adult females who aren't in the brood chamber. The hunting group brings the carcasses of the bugs they find back to the nest to be digested and stored. The third group of freakworm is the juveniles, who are tasked with protecting the nest, managing food stores, and caring for the brood mothers and young.