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The velvet wormSpeleoperipatus spelaeusPeck, 1975 is one of the rarest velvet worm species reported, as it is only known from its type locality, Pedro Great Cave, Clarendon Parish, Jamaica. The type material of the species, the only four specimens available in known scientific collections, was obtained in the early 1970’s, and since then, no additional specimens have been available for research. More recently, observations of three probably conspecific specimens by the Jamaican Caves Organisation, not collected, have been made in a different location, Swansea Cave, Saint Catherine Parish. Here we report and document five specimens of this rare species from the type locality, Pedro Great Cave, as well as some observations about their behavior. Placing this species in a phylogenetic context should be attempted in the future, to better understand the significance ofSpeleoperipatus spelaeusand its evolutionary origins, its relationship to the Swansea Cave specimens, and to determine what are its closest relatives and whether those are other Jamaican species or velvet worms from other geographical areas. 

Abstract Systematic assessments of species extinction risk at regular intervals are necessary for informing conservation action^1,2. Ongoing developments in taxonomy, threatening processes and research further underscore the need for reassessment^3,4. Here we report the findings of the second Global Amphibian Assessment, evaluating 8,011 species for the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species. We find that amphibians are the most threatened vertebrate class (40.7% of species are globally threatened). The updated Red List Index shows that the status of amphibians is deteriorating globally, particularly for salamanders and in the Neotropics. Disease and habitat loss drove 91% of status deteriorations between 1980 and 2004. Ongoing and projected climate change effects are now of increasing concern, driving 39% of status deteriorations since 2004, followed by habitat loss (37%). Although signs of species recoveries incentivize immediate conservation action, scaled-up investment is urgently needed to reverse the current trends.