# Help identifying Centipede



## robc (Feb 14, 2009)

I've never posted in here...I'm mainly a T guy.   I do respect the affection you all for your pedes, same as I do for my T's. These just aren't really my thing. I was given a pede when I got some T's today and I was told it was a Scolopendra heros...but after looking around on the 'net, mine doesn't look like the others I've seen, no blue at all. Do they molt into those colors? This one is about 5-6"...can you tell me exactly what sp it is?

Thanks!

Here's some pics:


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## peterbourbon (Feb 14, 2009)

Hi,

to me it looks like _Scolopendra polymorpha_.
Where is it from?

Regards,
Turgut


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## szappan (Feb 14, 2009)

+1 on the _scolopendra polymorpha_ vote - I've got one just like it.

And welcome to the myriapod section, I watched your roach colony set-up video last night, funny and informational  :clap:


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## Spider787 (Feb 14, 2009)

Looks like a S. polymorpha for sure.  It looks like an adult to I would not expect it to get any bigger.  S. heros are blue with a read head, and as far as I know and bassed upon what I have seen here in Oklahoma, they are that color for most if not all their life.


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## Rick McJimsey (Feb 14, 2009)

Yes, Scolopendra polymorpha for sure, gorgeous one at that!
Also, it looks exactly like mine which came from texas.
Although there are many color forms of this species, hence its species name, polymorpha.


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## robc (Feb 14, 2009)

Thanks, guys!! I really appreciate the responses. I was wondering what it was...the research I did online just didn't look like what I had. And since I know nothing about pedes, I figured I'd ask you guys. LOL
I will say after watching him for a while, this is the first one I've seen in person, they are very interesting creatures. I can see how you guys could love them and get into them. I'm just not really a pede kinda guy, I'm more into things with only 8 legs! LOL
I do have a few other questions...I usually do a ton of research before I get something and this one was a surprise so I'm a little out of my element.
What are the two "prongy" things on it's tail? It was whipping them around pretty good and appeared to be trying to nail me. Is this particular species very venomous? I've heard some pedes are worse than others....same with T's, I'd imagine. I'd read that the Heros Sp can leave tiny lacerations with it's feet and put poison into those little cuts...any truth to that? I'm considering keeping it...and wanted to get as much info as I can. I'd read that they prefer temps about 80* with 80% humidity...which is basically what my T room is at - it's sealed and temp/humidity controlled, so I figured he'd be good in there. Oh, also - how do you sex one of these?? Holding it to do so isn't an option right now...still a little, um, nervous around it. I'll gladly pick up my 11" spider but this guy...no thanks! LOL  They just seem to have a lot more defense and attitude than T's do. Thanks again guys and sorry for all the "newbie" questions...LOL
Rob


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## Only Exotics (Feb 14, 2009)

Rob, 80 degrees is fine, don't keep the coco fiber too moist this is a drier type of species ( keeping too moist may lead to mycosis ). Place a water dish in there for drinking purposes just make sure the dish is not deep so the pede can get in & out without drowning.

Feed once or twice a week on various bugs these guys will eat anything they are not picky. I've heard the their bites are painful but nothing to serious like a S. subspinipes etc.. Just becareful & watch your fingers especially when opening the enclosure they can spazz out when disturbed. Anyhow you should be all set good luck & enjoy your new pede


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## robc (Feb 14, 2009)

Only Exotics said:


> Rob, 80 degrees is fine, don't keep the coco fiber too moist this is a drier type of species ( keeping too moist may lead to mycosis ). Place a water dish in there for drinking purposes just make sure the dish is not deep so the pede can get in & out without drowning.
> 
> Feed once or twice a week on various bugs these guys will eat anything they are not picky. I've heard the their bites are painful but nothing to serious like a S. subspinipes etc.. Just becareful & watch your fingers especially when opening the enclosure they can spazz out when disturbed. Anyhow you should be all set good luck & enjoy your new pede


Thank you Ron!!!


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## Quixtar (Feb 14, 2009)

robc said:


> Thanks, guys!! I really appreciate the responses. I was wondering what it was...the research I did online just didn't look like what I had. And since I know nothing about pedes, I figured I'd ask you guys. LOL
> I will say after watching him for a while, this is the first one I've seen in person, they are very interesting creatures. I can see how you guys could love them and get into them. I'm just not really a pede kinda guy, I'm more into things with only 8 legs! LOL
> I do have a few other questions...I usually do a ton of research before I get something and this one was a surprise so I'm a little out of my element.
> What are the two "prongy" things on it's tail? It was whipping them around pretty good and appeared to be trying to nail me. Is this particular species very venomous? I've heard some pedes are worse than others....same with T's, I'd imagine. I'd read that the Heros Sp can leave tiny lacerations with it's feet and put poison into those little cuts...any truth to that? I'm considering keeping it...and wanted to get as much info as I can. I'd read that they prefer temps about 80* with 80% humidity...which is basically what my T room is at - it's sealed and temp/humidity controlled, so I figured he'd be good in there. Oh, also - how do you sex one of these?? Holding it to do so isn't an option right now...still a little, um, nervous around it. I'll gladly pick up my 11" spider but this guy...no thanks! LOL  They just seem to have a lot more defense and attitude than T's do. Thanks again guys and sorry for all the "newbie" questions...LOL
> Rob


Well I will tell you that you're more likely to get bitten by the average pede for no reason while handling than you are with even the most defensive T. Though their venom isn't quite at the caliber of buthid scorps, they're a notch above Ts and have caused fatalities. I keep Ts, scorps, and pedes, and despite the aforementioned statement, I am still more comfortable holding hot scorps than I am holding a crazy pede. S. polymorpha is really mild though.

You can't sex pedes as easily as Ts and scorps. There are no visible external morphological differences between males and females. Males of some species tend to be more slender than the females, but without a frame of reference, it's really hard to say. Your only options are to get communal species and see which ones spin the sperm webs for a male, wait until your pede lays eggs for a female, or to try and collect the pede's molt before it consumes it, if the sexual organs are still intact that is.


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## robc (Feb 14, 2009)

Quixtar said:


> Well I will tell you that you're more likely to get bitten by the average pede for no reason while handling than you are with even the most defensive T. Though their venom isn't quite at the caliber of buthid scorps, they're a notch above Ts and have caused fatalities. I keep Ts, scorps, and pedes, and despite the aforementioned statement, I am still more comfortable holding hot scorps than I am holding a crazy pede. S. polymorpha is really mild though.
> 
> You can't sex pedes as easily as Ts and scorps. There are no visible external morphological differences between males and females. Males of some species tend to be more slender than the females, but without a frame of reference, it's really hard to say. Your only options are to get communal species and see which ones spin the sperm webs for a male, wait until your pede lays eggs for a female, or to try and collect the pede's molt before it consumes it, if the sexual organs are still intact that is.


Thanks for the info!!


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## herpguy (Feb 14, 2009)

Rob those two "prongy" things are another set of legs, put they are specifically more like "grabbers".  They can give you a little pinch, but rarely break the skin. Some species actually have the back legs swollen and operating like pincers!
Also, very very large pedes (11"+) may occassionally break the skin while handling, but it's not a big deal.
Anyways, they do not inject venom or have any poison on the feet, though you don't know what bacteria are on their feet!
Also, S. polymorpha and just about any other North American pede has very mild venom (think a bad smithi bite).  S. subspinipes complex species are the ones that you have to watch out for.
Good to see that another person has joined the centipede society!
A lot of T keepers seem to be afraid of centipedes for some reason, I really don't know why!
-Dave


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## robc (Feb 14, 2009)

herpguy said:


> Rob those two "prongy" things are another set of legs, put they are specifically more like "grabbers".  They can give you a little pinch, but rarely break the skin. Some species actually have the back legs swollen and operating like pincers!
> Also, very very large pedes (11"+) may occassionally break the skin while handling, but it's not a big deal.
> Anyways, they do not inject venom or have any poison on the feet, though you don't know what bacteria are on their feet!
> Also, S. polymorpha and just about any other North American pede has very mild venom (think a bad smithi bite).  S. subspinipes complex species are the ones that you have to watch out for.
> ...


Thanks for the info! I really appreciate you guys answering all my questions! I'm leaning towards keeping it...very interesting creature! What should I feed it? I've read it eats roaches, crickets...the usual T foods...


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## Rick McJimsey (Feb 14, 2009)

Yes, standard T diets apply.
Keep it a bit drier, though. You don't want mycosis on that beautiful pede!


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## Draiman (Feb 15, 2009)

Quixtar said:


> Though their venom isn't quite at the caliber of buthid scorps, they're a notch above Ts and have caused fatalities.


If someone who is considering getting a centipede reads this, he/she will probably be put off - for the wrong reasons. You are being misleading here.

I do not agree that centipedes are "a notch above Ts" in terms of venom. Look at _Stromatopelma_ and _Poecilotheria_. In fact, an Australian study has shown that the bite of some Selenocosmiines (_Phlogiellus_, _Phlogius_, etc.) will kill a canine fairly quickly, in several cases, within 2 hours. And when you look at what _Poecilotheria_ venom does to humans, how can that be a notch below centipede venom? You may argue that there has been one (yes, only one - that Philippine girl) fatality from a centipede bite (the other "fatality", a Turkish man, died of a bacterial infection, not the bite or venom itself. In fact, the centipede he was bitten by, _Sc. cingulata_, has very mild venom) and none from tarantulas, but in this case it was a _7-year-old_ girl who got bitten on the _neck_. The massive swelling affected her airways and impeded her breathing. If it had been a _Poecilotheria_ sp. which had bitten her instead, at the same part of the body, I am sure she would have been killed as well.


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## Quixtar (Feb 15, 2009)

Gavin said:


> If someone who is considering getting a centipede reads this, he/she will probably be put off - for the wrong reasons. You are being misleading here.
> 
> I do not agree that centipedes are "a notch above Ts" in terms of venom. Look at _Stromatopelma_ and _Poecilotheria_. In fact, an Australian study has shown that the bite of some Selenocosmiines (_Phlogiellus_, _Phlogius_, etc.) will kill a canine fairly quickly, in several cases, within 2 hours. And when you look at what _Poecilotheria_ venom does to humans, how can that be a notch below centipede venom? You may argue that there has been one (yes, only one - that Philippine girl) fatality from a centipede bite (the other "fatality", a Turkish man, died of a bacterial infection, not the bite or venom itself. In fact, the centipede he was bitten by, _Sc. cingulata_, has very mild venom) and none from tarantulas, but in this case it was a _7-year-old_ girl who got bitten on the _neck_. The massive swelling affected her airways and impeded her breathing. If it had been a _Poecilotheria_ sp. which had bitten her instead, at the same part of the body, I am sure she would have been killed as well.


If anyone is put off by that, they might as well not consider scorpions either, because the fact of the matter is, most people venturing into pede territory from the T hobby are perfectly aware that they're going to be dealing with a more unpredictable and ill-tempered animal.

Fatalities aren't well documented, and though those two cases are the only scientifically documented ones, there are many other mortality figures that have not been well studied.

Statistics:

Spiders:

http://www.nationmaster.com/red/pie-T/mor_con_wit_ven_spi-mortality-contact-with-venomous-spiders

Myriapods:

http://www.nationmaster.com/red/pie...ntact-centipedes-venomous-millipedes-tropical

Scorpions:

http://www.nationmaster.com/red/pie-T/mor_con_wit_sco-mortality-contact-with-scorpions

Let us first analyze the data for the spiders. Given that the statistics merely mention "spider" bites, I am inclined to think this includes both true spiders and tarantulas. The top countries for which there have been spider envenomation fatalities are not those that Poecilotheria, Stromatopelma, and Phlogius sp. are found. The statistics do not contain countries of East Africa, South Asia, or Southeast Asia. As there are no significant NW tarantulas, I believe these deaths to be attributed to true spiders of the Loxosceles, Latrodectus, and Phoneutria genus, which are native to those regions listed at the top.

Let us then skip the order to the scorpions. The statistics make perfect sense, being that those top regions are inhabited by scorpions of the Centruroides, Tityus, Androctonus, and Leiurus genus - genera containing known medically significant species.

Finally, I will cover the centipedes. Scolopendra subspinipes exists in Southeast Asia and countries of Oceania. None of these are listed despite subspinipes being commonly referred to as the most potent. Centipede venoms are not as well studied as those of the arachnids. As such, there is no available data for the vast majority of scolopendrids. Scolopendra viridicornis has a LD50 value much lower than that of Scolopendra subspinipes. Given that the compounds of their toxins do not differ drastically, it is likely that S. viridicornis is medically significant to humans as well as to the tested mice. Data for S. gigantea and galapagoensis forms are very limited. If we'll look at the statistics shown, the countries listed at the top are quite reasonably the ones where gigantea, galapagoensis, and viridicornis are found.

I do not think you will have a problem with my deduction thus far, though I will say that it is not entirely conclusive, as it does not factor in the frequency of human contact with said genera. It could be that people of those countries come into contact far more frequently with terrestrial centipedes than with say S. calceatum, which makes its habitat in palm and coconut trees.

In addition, I would like to say that there is an added danger to scorps and pedes that is not of concern in Ts. The composition of T venom makes it impossible for an allergic reaction to occur, but this is not the case with pede and scorp venom. Also, if you'd like to stroll over to the bite reports section here, at Venomlist, at ATS, BTS, and other big invert forums, you will see that pede envenomation generally incurs more devastating results than that of most Ts.


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## Draiman (Feb 15, 2009)

Quixtar said:


> It could be that people of those countries come into contact far more frequently with terrestrial centipedes than with say S. calceatum, which makes its habitat in palm and coconut trees.


You're right. Therefore, we now have a very plausible explanation for the disparity in the number of deaths caused by centipedes and that of tarantulas. Other points that support this are:

1) Centipedes are much more predisposed to biting than tarantulas
2) Centipedes are much more active than tarantulas, almost always coming out of hiding every night to actively hunt for prey

There you have it - the reasons behind the statistics. And for the record, I never disputed the level of _danger_ posed by centipedes - I disputed your statement that "centipede _venom_ is a notch higher than that of tarantulas". In other words, the higher number of deaths caused by centipedes does not necessarily mean their venom is _"a notch above"_ that of Ts.



Quixtar said:


> Though their *venom* isn't quite at the caliber of buthid scorps, *they're a notch above Ts* and have caused fatalities.


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## robc (Feb 15, 2009)

Thanks again guys for all the information. Needless to say, I won't be handling the pede anytime soon! I've had a bite from a Poecilotheria Regalis and that was bad enough, no need to tempt fate! LOL


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## -Exotic (Feb 15, 2009)

OMG ROBS INTO PEDES WOOO
=D
Well rob you have a *Scolopendra Polymorpha*
Great species Rob
They are really good eaters


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## robc (Feb 15, 2009)

-Exotic said:


> OMG ROBS INTO PEDES WOOO
> =D
> Well rob you have a *Scolopendra Polymorpha*
> Great species Rob
> They are really good eaters


They will get custom enclosures to!!


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## -Exotic (Feb 15, 2009)

robc said:


> They will get custom enclosures to!!


oh man im waiting for the video know!
bahaa what are your iddeas for the enclosure?


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## robc (Feb 15, 2009)

-Exotic said:


> oh man im waiting for the video know!
> bahaa what are your iddeas for the enclosure?


Haven't decided yet...I know so little about their habitats. I need to do more research so I can make something very natural for it.


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## Galapoheros (Feb 16, 2009)

There is a lot of room for more pede action in this section, it's kind of slow sometimes.  I've kept  Sc polymorpha the same as Sc heros pedes, I see them together in same areas too.  I usually use coco fiber as sub but I recently started experimenting with desert sub that I brought back from the desert, it looks better to me.  Ime, it works best if you keep the sub totally dry, put a water dish in there and cover the top with plastic wrap or plexiglass.  When it's covered, the humidity will stay up enough and you can go weeks without filling the water dish, ...like your Ts.  Everybody seems to do it a little different and have their own success at keeping them alive.  I've also kept a lot of them in only deli cups for close to three years on dry coco fiber.  I just spray the sides every once in a while.  I've never kept a pede without cutting down on ventilation.  If I did leave a screen top uncovered, I would use coco fiber and keep it semi-moist but not too wet.  I see them in rocky areas.  I think a poly might be happy in something like this, but if it wasn't covered, it would be too dry:


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