# I want one that gets over 12"



## Travis K (Sep 27, 2007)

Can you please tell me what Scolopendra species i should be looking for that can attain an overall length of 12"+?

LOL, i guess i am a size queen

Oh and where can i get the species you are directing me to, i know S. Gigantea for instance is a hard one to find.


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## thedude (Sep 27, 2007)

some S. subpinpes get to be around 10" or so is that close enough??


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## Travis K (Sep 27, 2007)

*No*

I really want to get one that gets BIG!!!!


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## Geography Guy (Sep 27, 2007)

Hi

I heard Ethmostigmus trigonopodus gets pretty big but I doubt 12 inches

I think S.gigantea is the only one?


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## Travis K (Sep 27, 2007)

*well how big?*

so how big does that one get?


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## SouthernStyle (Sep 27, 2007)

Travis K said:


> so how big does that one get?


The S.Gigantea can grow to be close to 12", I've heard of some of the S.Subpinies, especially the Mau Chau (or how ever it's speeeled) Can grow CLOSE to 12", We've got one now that's pushing 11....So It COULD be possible...Just keep your eyes open


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## pandinus (Sep 27, 2007)

even a nine inch centipede is a lot bigger than it sounds.


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## mindlessvw (Sep 27, 2007)

Good luck on finding a gigantea in the states...or at least one at a price you are willing to spend...but that is your best bet...i had a subspinipes that was at least ten inches and it was plenty big for its purpose...


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## darkeye (Sep 27, 2007)

I concur with John, 
a 10" pede is a LOT bigger than on might think.  I had one that was 9" and wow!

Regards,
Martin LaBelle


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## nissan480 (Sep 27, 2007)

I got a 10" plus puerto rican giant bought in 2004 from swift.And a 9 inch vietnamese.You'd think the vietnamese was big.......until you saw the prg.


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## beetleman (Sep 27, 2007)

yeah, my haitian is goodsized 9",and suspinipies(diff.locals) are about 10" each,and my gigantea is pushing about 11 1/2 " there is another that is black i think it's virdicornis?not sure, but in the past i had them,and they were huge! over 12" but ofcourse that was in the past,never saw them availible again my scolo.castanipcepts is also pretty big,i love the BIG pedes:clap:


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## Selenops (Sep 27, 2007)

I had a Vietnamese Giant pushing between 9-10", one of those purple people eaters, and geezus those eyes. Impressive indeed.

Right I have S h castaneiceps around 6", a Sinai Desert Pede around 6", and a Thai Giant around 7-7.5".


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## Stylopidae (Sep 27, 2007)

This one is around 7"-7.5"


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## Galapoheros (Sep 27, 2007)

I'm convinced Scolopendromorpha can very greatly within the same species, they are weird critters.  I had an S. h. castaneiceps around 9.5 inches when walking around, ..at rest it was a solid 10 inches ....still looking for the pics, will post pics when I find them later.  I've heard one report of  16 inches, but I'm thinking the terminal legs and antennae were included, so prob 13 to 14 inches.  The report came from The Snake Farm in central Texas.  They are not really into inverts so I don't think they paid much attention to it if it the pede actually existed they claimed they had.  Found some pics of a big one I had:











most average between 6 and 7 inches as "mature" adults.  Adults can be sexually mature at around 4 inches from what I've seen so far, and can continue to grow.


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## Geography Guy (Sep 28, 2007)

pandinus said:


> even a nine inch centipede is a lot bigger than it sounds.


I agree with you. 

Even a 6 incher is a pretty good size. An 8+ inch subspinipes should be more then enough pede for anyone. 

Cheers


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## Geography Guy (Sep 28, 2007)

Galapoheros said:


> I'm convinced Scolopendromorpha can very greatly within the same species, they are weird critters.  I had an S. h. castaneiceps around 9.5 inches when walking around, ..at rest it was a solid 10 inches ....still looking for the pics, will post pics when I find them later.  I've heard one report of  16 inches, but I'm thinking the terminal legs and antennae were included, so prob 13 to 14 inches.  The report came from The Snake Farm in central Texas.  They are not really into inverts so I don't think they paid much attention to it if it the pede actually existed they claimed they had.  Found some pics of a big one I had:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I think they can mature before that. My pling Ethmostigmus trigonopodus I don't think is 4 inches and has already had eggs. I might be wrong though


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## mindlessvw (Sep 28, 2007)

todd seriously...those guys are monsters!!!!


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## Travis K (Sep 28, 2007)

*Size Queen*

Like i said i am a size queen, I love the looks of these guys!

Hey truely some amazing pics, Thanks!

I am hoping to get some pics of a pede this weekend and have you all tell me if i should pic it up or not, I just need to know what species it is.  I will post a thread when i get the pics.


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## Stylopidae (Sep 28, 2007)

Size isn't the only thing you should be factoring in.

Scolopendra subspinpes ssp get huge, but a bite from them could land you in the hospital begging for painkillers. They're also prone to random deaths.

You need to be researching the species of centipede you're planning on getting before you buy one.


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## Galapoheros (Sep 28, 2007)

It's not safe to pick up any of them, maybe the little snail eating pedes but if you don't want to get bit, I just wouldn't do it.  I don't do it anymore.  They will bite without warning sometimes, they're pedes.  Yeah Geoguy, I was referring to S. heros pedes.  I tend to skip things on paper even though the thoughts are in my head.  The polymorpha around here are typically about 2 inches long as adults.  I walked by one of my young 3 inch S. heros today and caught him going through the motions of spinning web ...by himself!  I felt embarrassed for him, I think he's going through puberty.  Anyway, so I put him in with a female.  He freaked and ran for the hills.  Maybe another molt or two.


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## bistrobob85 (Sep 29, 2007)

Galapo, your pede must have been pretty horny . At least you know for sure he's a male now.

 phil.


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## Drachenjager (Oct 28, 2007)

s. heros castaniceps, can get over 12" of this i am certain. I cant prove it tho untill i am able to actually catch one of the ones i see in the bedrock cracks. and that will take some doing .
however you are not likely to find one that you can get to over 7-8" Todd got lucky...to bad he let it go lol


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## Galapoheros (Oct 28, 2007)

I didn't get that lucky.  I paid a high price for that pede.  I didn't find that one.  I had to trade snakes and several bugs for that thing.  Guess I was lucky enough to come across someone else that had it.  But it was worth it.  I think it's rare to come across a 10+ inch S. heros but they are out there.  Personally, my half-butt speculation sense tells me there might be a gene for "getting big" floating around that expresses itself now and then, maybe an on or off kind of thing, a VERY half-butt guess there.  I just got back from w tx recently and a motel owner I know there that keeps snakes said his neighbor showed him a S. heros heros that he found on the side of his house.  He nailed it to a board and put it in the freezer.  He said it was either 12 3/4 inches or 12 1/4 inches, ...I can't remember.  I asked how it was measured, from what body part to what body part.  He said he didn't know.  Either way, that's pretty big.  I can't remember who it was, maybe Steven.  But whoever it was, someone in the know on the AB had looked into it and said that on record S. heros is the second largest on average behind S. gigantea.  But what about galapagoensis?  Guess it doesn't matter as far as getting one of those goes.  I keep reading strange reports of big subspinipes too ....who knows?!!  Anyway, I'm going to see if I can get them to send a picture to me of that S. heros heros in the freezer next to a ruler.  But I don't even know if he has a digicam.


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## bistrobob85 (Oct 28, 2007)

Personnally, my largest pedes are around 7'' and i find them quite impressive. It would be quite a handful to have a 10'' one with twice that diameter, i'd probably get much longer tweezers, hehe. 

I dont understand why so many people want THE BIG ONES while they've never seen a true giant one and have no clue of what dealing with them is like... 

 phil.


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## REAL (Oct 28, 2007)

bistrobob85 said:


> Personnally, my largest pedes are around 7'' and i find them quite impressive. It would be quite a handful to have a 10'' one with twice that diameter, i'd probably get much longer tweezers, hehe.
> 
> I dont understand why so many people want THE BIG ONES while they've never seen a true giant one and have no clue of what dealing with them is like...
> 
> phil.


I got a 7" one and I don't think its quite impressive yet (referring to a centipede btw...). I am definately wanting something that hits 10" or more. A 7" pede does not impress me much (that song comes to mind). 

I think people want big pedes because they rather have a bigger "cooler" looking pede than a tiny whimpy one. Taller, bigger, newer, etc isn't always better but many times it is , at least in opinion-wise . People that want bigger/better/newer things in life are usually people that lack something in their life and through certain various means, try to fill up those gaps. 

Its like raising a kid, you want him or her to grow up "big" and "strong" and "smart". You're not going to want them to grow up "small" and "weak". It's sorta human nature to think like that, only a certain few whom are very open-minded view and say it differently. It also shows that you're raising them well.

I rather have a really big impressive pede and buy extra stuff to keep it in, than have a really small, weak looking one.

---------
I'm really open minded in a way and I also think the way I say this is also selfish, even if my pede is small I'll still love it though, I'll still keep it no matter what. I guess whether they grow big or not so big is all up to nature and partially me. Its just in society, thats why ppl wanna line up and buy game systems when they first come out, thats why ppl want the latest stuff and pay a lot more green for it, thats why my neighbor goes out and buys a brand new car with only $2000 cash in hand and ends up with thousands of dollars in interest, thats why some of us prize certain pets more than others. We always want something unique, something different, something better, bigger, stronger, "cooler". 

I'll continue this once someone starts saying something. No arguments please. I'm just saying this because its my opinion.


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## maxident213 (Oct 29, 2007)

There is a preserved specimen of _S. viridicornis_ in the collection at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh. It is definitely the largest centipede I have ever seen.  Unless the glass jar it's in is causing a _serious_ optical illusion, then I wouldn't doubt for a second that that pede is over 12".  I couldn't believe how big it was.


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## REAL (Oct 29, 2007)

maxident213 said:


> There is a preserved specimen of _S. viridicornis_ in the collection at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh. It is definitely the largest centipede I have ever seen.  Unless the glass jar it's in is causing a _serious_ optical illusion, then I wouldn't doubt for a second that that pede is over 12".  I couldn't believe how big it was.


Lol. I'm pretty thrilled in the feeling that there's something out there hidden in the world that dwarfs even the one you just saw. I'm talking complete annihilation. I'm very confident that there is.


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## beetleman (Oct 29, 2007)

when they were availible in the past i had the big black virdies,no words can describe them but my suspinipies are also pretty huge(diff sp.) i also have heros,alternans that are big also.but my gigantea is ofcourse the biggest.i'm always on the lookout for huge pedes:drool:


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## cacoseraph (Oct 29, 2007)

Geography Guy said:


> Hi
> 
> I heard Ethmostigmus trigonopodus gets pretty big but I doubt 12 inches
> 
> I think S.gigantea is the only one?



by the book they only get to four inches and i have never seen/read/heard of one longer than 6"

the dealer claim that they get massive is based on the assumption they are some crazy Scolopendra species. i am guessing you are basing the bigness off of dealer sheets with African Giant Yellowleg (Scolpendra sp.) getting to 9"+?


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## bistrobob85 (Oct 29, 2007)

I personally have a ''Giant Yellow Leg'' that's a bit under 6'' . I think it's a male too, it has two very large gonopods while some of my other specimens with smaller ones laid eggs, which is why i hypothetise the dimorphism...

I really wish i would have seen some of those giant viridicornis, they must have been very crazy things to look at...

 phil.


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## cacoseraph (Oct 29, 2007)

bistrobob85 said:


> I personally have a ''Giant Yellow Leg'' that's a bit under 6'' . I think it's a male too, it has two very large gonopods while some of my other specimens with smaller ones laid eggs, which is why i hypothetise the dimorphism...
> 
> I really wish i would have seen some of those giant viridicornis, they must have been very crazy things to look at...
> 
> phil.


szappan has some vid of them on youtube. i believe that is his username on youtube, also.  cool vids to check out if you haven't seen them.


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## bistrobob85 (Oct 29, 2007)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3APJA0EedSE

Wow, now THAT's a BIG viridicornis!!!! Thanks Caco, i had already seen a few of them but i dont think i ever saw that one... 

 phil.


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## mr.wilderness (Oct 29, 2007)

arggghhhhhhhhhhh, I want a viridicornis so badddddddddd!!!! :wall: do they sacrifice some of their size in length for chunkiness?  They just seem to be bulkier than the giganteas that I've seen.


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## szappan (Oct 30, 2007)

cacoseraph said:
			
		

> cool vids to check out if you haven't seen them.


Thanks Dude!


			
				mr.wilderness said:
			
		

> do they sacrifice some of their size in length for chunkiness? They just seem to be bulkier than the giganteas that I've seen.


The viridicornis* was certainly bigger all-round at the point those videos were shot, but I don't think the gigantea was finished growing yet so who knows which one would have been bigger in the end.

Man, I was so lucky to ever have those... well... I've still got them only now they're in jars.  When changing the formaldehyde last August, I took some pics.

Here are some close-ups of the viridicornis* from that youtube video:














* or 'black gigantea' or galapagoensis or whatever it was...


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## bistrobob85 (Oct 30, 2007)

Wow, thanks for the precision of these pics... look at those neat little multiple eyes and the gigantic base of the antennae... Do you know where it was collected? I bet that pede would fight you for a piece of your sandwich . Thanks for the nice pics, Szappan. 

 phil.


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## beetleman (Oct 31, 2007)

:worship: :drool: oh yeah, that's what i'm talkin about


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## RottweilExpress (Oct 31, 2007)

I thought the Viridicornis in the vid was humongously lame. Couldn't find it's own ass even if it was served to it. Sure, impressive size, but........It must be a real grandpa at that size.


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## szappan (Nov 4, 2007)

bistrobob85 said:


> Wow, thanks for the precision of these pics... look at those neat little multiple eyes and the gigantic base of the antennae... Do you know where it was collected? I bet that pede would fight you for a piece of your sandwich . Thanks for the nice pics, Szappan.
> 
> phil.


Where it was collected?  No, I'm afraid not.   Believe it or not, I recieved this one through a 'custom order' with a pet store in suburban Toronto.  Later I'd gotten to know the actual importer which is how I got the second one ($40.00 CDN I think).  One day at his house he showed me multiple boxes of viridicornis / gigantea – from what I remember he had at least 4 of each and was having trouble selling them.  If I had only known how rare that was.  But at the time, I just thought I had something no one else wanted.  :wall:   



bistrobob85 said:


> Thanks for the nice pics, Szappan.


No problem!  here's one more for your patience:


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