# Centipede lifespan?



## CopperInMyVeins (Mar 31, 2006)

Hi there, I've always been really interested in centipedes, when I was younger I would catch and keep the local ones, which are only an inch or two long here in NY, and I love seeing the giants on display.  What I was wondering is what is the average and maximum lifespan of a large Scolopendra, and how long do they take to reach maturity?  Is there a lot of variation between species?  I'd really like to keep one, but I'd like an animal that will be around for more than a year or two, and I have no idea how their lifespans conpare to arachnids and insects.


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## cacoseraph (Mar 31, 2006)

MattInTheHat said:
			
		

> Hi there, I've always been really interested in centipedes, when I was younger I would catch and keep the local ones, which are only an inch or two long here in NY, and I love seeing the giants on display.  What I was wondering is what is the average and maximum lifespan of a large Scolopendra, and how long do they take to reach maturity?  Is there a lot of variation between species?  I'd really like to keep one, but I'd like an animal that will be around for more than a year or two, and I have no idea how their lifespans conpare to arachnids and insects.


some of the smaller giants can mature in a year or two

some of the others take longer.

the centipedes you were keeping in NY were most likely stone centipedes (lithobiomorpha) which can take 1-2 years to mature and live 3-4 if i remember right

the giants we have on these boards are Scolopendromorpha. some of those could live maybe ~10 years.

most invertebrate lifespans are heavily effected by environmental conditions. centipedes from harder to live places where food is scare might live longer... but if you fed them everyday and kept them at a slightly higher temp you could boost up there metabolism and they would live and die much faster, probably.

check out this german centipede site
this post is english (and by Steven on here... he posted it here too but i know it's a sticky/pinned and easy to find on the .de site )


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## CopperInMyVeins (Mar 31, 2006)

Thanks, that answers everything I wanted to know.


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## cacoseraph (Apr 6, 2006)

CopperInMyVeins said:
			
		

> Thanks, that answers everything I wanted to know.


also, i have a monstrous S. polymorpha that i bought over a year ago that was over 6" bodylength when i got it... it seems to be still going strong and is past full grown 

here is about a year ago, it's bigger now if anything





zoom


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## CopperInMyVeins (Apr 6, 2006)

Great looking pede, I love the markings.  If you don't mind me asking, where do you buy your centipedes?  All the online mail order places I've found seem to have a pretty limited selection.  I'm guessing there are more pet shops that carry them on the opposite coast.


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## cacoseraph (Apr 6, 2006)

CopperInMyVeins said:
			
		

> Great looking pede, I love the markings.  If you don't mind me asking, where do you buy your centipedes?  All the online mail order places I've found seem to have a pretty limited selection.  I'm guessing there are more pet shops that carry them on the opposite coast.



let me think
i bought that one in particular from a local petstore i do biz with.

i have bought most by count from krazy8sinvertebrates.com, they are based by me and i buy at shows

i bought a fair amount from http://www.strangecargoinvertebrates.com/ but i don't think Graham is in the bug biz right now (i bought the last of the yellow legs still listed, i believe)

uh, mostly i trade for them other than that


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## Morthoseth (Apr 25, 2006)

Yah one thing, What pet shop do ya'll buy from and how much on average do the centipedes you buy cost? Right now there is only one species of centipede at my local pet store 'Plano PEts" and it costs $27.


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## cacoseraph (Apr 25, 2006)

Morthoseth said:
			
		

> Yah one thing, What pet shop do ya'll buy from and how much on average do the centipedes you buy cost?


i buy from a couple local petstores when they randomly get centipedes in, but by far get most at shows or online.

without knowing species/common name, size, health, and like, history it is hard to say if $27 is a good or bad price.

centipedes that are in poor shape from bad care at an ill-informed petstore are not worth $27....

but i've gotten "steals" from petstores that just got a new shipment and didn't really know what they had...

mainly when buying a centipede that i can see before hand, i try to judge if it's healthy or not. is it quick to react, will it eat if you ask to have a cricket or mealworm chucked in, does it have access to a waterdish.

for looks, if the centipede looks like a snake with legs.... a real fat body, it's probably doing ok 

if the top and bottom armor plates are touching all along the sides, so you can't see the skin inbetween, for sure see if it will eat. if no, it could be on it's way out... don't know if it's a great investment then


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## Morthoseth (Apr 26, 2006)

Thanks for lettin me know Cacoseraph. The only thing that I dont know about is where are the shows you go to? I've never even heard of a show that they have Myriapods at. Oh, Plus what would be the best species for a beginner?


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## 324r350 (Apr 27, 2006)

cacoseraph said:
			
		

> the centipedes you were keeping in NY were most likely stone centipedes (lithobiomorpha) which can take 1-2 years to mature and live 3-4 if i remember right


believe it or not, these fellows live 6-7 and mature 3-4


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