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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Myriapods (Myriapoda) » Centipedes (Chilopoda)

Class Chilopoda - Centipedes

Classification · Other Common Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Remarks · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited

Creepy-Crawly from Hell - Giant Desert Centipede - Scolopendra heros - Scolopendra heros

Hemiscolopendra marginata - Hemiscolopendra marginata

Scolopendra polymorpha? - Scolopendra polymorpha

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Myriapoda (Myriapods)

Class Chilopoda (Centipedes)

Other Common Names

Rainworms, Hundred-leggers

Numbers

Estimated ca. 8,000 spp. globally (<3,000 described) arranged into 23 families (9 in NA) and 5 orders (4 in NA); at least 8 spp. of our fauna are adventive(1)(2)

nearctic fauna poorly inventoried, with 54 spp. recorded in Canada alone (twice as many estimated)(3), prob. hundreds in the US

Size

10-270+ mm worldwide; in our area, Scolopendra heros is the largest species, reaching ~150 mm

Identification

Antennae large; one pair of legs per body segment (15-191 pairs, always an odd number); hind legs extend backwards. All possess “poison claws” (prehensors, forcipules) under the head. Most centipedes run fast, but Geophilomorpha are rather sluggish.(1)

Range

Worldwide; some range beyond the Arctic Circle(1)

Habitat

wide variety of habitats; abundant in deserts(1)

under bark, in rotting logs, under stones or boards (4)

Food

Primarily smaller arthropods, but larger spp. of Scolopendromorpha may attack (and feed on) small vertebrates; prey is killed by venom injected through the poison claws(1)

Remarks

Larger species can inflict a painful bite if handled

Print References

Bonato et al. (2010) A common terminology for the external anatomy of centipedes (Chilopoda). ZooKeys 69: 17–51. (Full text)

(5)

Bailey, J. W. (1928). The Chilopoda of New York State, with notes on the Diplopoda (No. 276). University of the State of New York.

Edgecombe, G. D., & Giribet, G. (2007). Evolutionary biology of centipedes (Myriapoda: Chilopoda). Annu. Rev. Entomol., 52, 151-170.

Internet References

Fact sheet by Gordon Ramel

Works Cited

1.	Shelley R.M. The myriapods, the world’s leggiest animals

2.	Bonato L. et al. (2016) ChiloBase 2.0 - A world catalogue of centipedes (Chilopoda)

3.	Myriapoda of Canada Langor D.W., deWaard J.R., Snyder B.A. 2019. ZooKeys 819: 169-186.

4.	Eastern Forest Insects Whiteford L. Baker. 1972. U.S. Department of Agriculture · Forest Service.

5.	An Annotated Catalog of Centipedes (Chilopoda) From the United States of America, Canada and Greenland (1758–2008) Randy J. Mercurio. 2010.

Contributed by Troy Bartlett on 16 February, 2004 - 12:31pm
Additional contributions by Beatriz Moisset, Robin McLeod, Phillip Harpootlian, Lynette Elliott, Christopher C Wirth, Bbarnd, Chuck Entz, Graham M, Aaron Schusteff, v belov, KenW, Marci Hess, JBrown
Last updated 12 July, 2023 - 12:03pm

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