velvet worm?!

[onychophoran]

I could give you a hundred links, but they'd all refer to the UK, which probably wouldn't be much use to you.
I'd certainly suggest you try your local aquatics dealer, if you have one, or you could try a search on yahoo for your area.
The reefkeeping hobby isn't exactly the same in the US as it is here, so I don't want to dig myself into a hole!

 

[onychophoran]

BTW, mantis shrimps are renowned for they hardiness. Affected hobbiests, no knowing what to do with them, and put them in unheated plastic tanks of aquarium water, with only an airstone, and they have trived on slivers of fish.
Note the larger species can approach 8" (or perhaps even more - please correct me), so PLASTIC tanks, and other compromises to their rather powerful fore-appendages need to be carefully considered! (They aren't called thumb-splitters for nothing...)

 

[Wade]

I know of keepers who keep the mantis shrimps in the overlow filter sumps of their marine aquariums. Convienent way to keep one if you're already keeping a marine aquarium, as they have access to good water conditions but are seperate from the fish!

Some species of mantis shrimps are adapted for crushing the exoskeletons of other marine invertebrates, and these are the ones most likley to break the glass of an aquarium.

Wade

 

[kliide]

Head to chinatown for Mantis Shrimp

If your'e looking for some Mantis Shrimp, I'd try chinatown seafood markets (your chinatown may vary). Local fishers may be selling them to Chinese restaurants so a trip to the docks in the morning might produce some for you.

Mantis shrimp are relatively new on the menu (~10-15yrs, I'm guessing), but are growing in popularity. Quite cheap, too.

However, the conditions you'll find them in may be less than optimal. You may have a chance at rescuing a few of the healthier ones. I'm not sure what species they are, but they are not colorful and definitely do not have clubbed arms.

Good luck.

 

[crashergs]

my captive bred peripatus: reviving a very old thread

'

** very rare color morph I was able to breed **

 

[gunks]

Wow...Pretty. And cute!

So are you still breeding the lil guys?

 

[ragnew]

Heh, now that's pretty cool! Looks like some sort of mutant slug in the last picture. Very, very cool little critter.