For the identification of insects and other fauna and flora of South Africa.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Millipedes 3

We have the most colorful millipedes here......... Centipedes and millipedes are distant relatives of lobsters, crayfish and shrimp. Unlike their marine cousins, centipedes and millipedes are land dwellers, but they do prefer moist habitats or areas of high humidity.
They have two pairs of legs attached to each body segment. Some kinds may have over 200 pairs, and there are about 1300 kinds known over the world, ranging in length from a twelfth of an inch to 8 inches.
Millipedes eat plant material, especially soft, decomposing plant tissue. Their defense consists of secreting stinking juice from pores along its sides.
Their fossils, some over a foot long, are found among the swamp plants that went into the formation of coal. When touched, they curl up and "play dead".

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