Hitch-Hiking Millipede Found in a Box!

feelahthetigress

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 18, 2017
Messages
42
Hey, I recently got a package from Amazon, as I love online shopping. I recieved it yesterday, removed the contents, and left the empty box on my bedroom floor overnight.

This morning, much to my surprise, there was a millipede in the box! I took a look at it, and it's obviously an adult scarlet millipede. It was lethargic and confused (likely from being exposed to dry air all night), so I rescued it and added it to my milli viv, whereupon it recovered within a few minutes.

So....where did this guy come from? I checked tracking, and this package came from an Illinois distribution center, and I thought Scarlets only lived in Florida here in the U.S.?

I also thought maybe it was one of mine who escaped my tank and got into the box somehow, but my tank has high glass walls and a lid, so I dont see how he'd have managed it.... I do wonder if he really hitchhiked through the mail in an Amazon package and somehow avoided being squished or dried out on the way?

Update: It's been about 30 min since I added him to the viv, and while he's walking around, he's still acting very clumsy and uncoordinated - I hope dehydration hasnt caused any brain damage.

EDIT: I just found another Scarlet Millipede on the floor outside the box! I have added that one to the viv, too. Weirdly, it is also still alive.
 
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feelahthetigress

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 18, 2017
Messages
42
Weird... Did it pass through Florida during transit?
I honestly have no idea, as the postal service can be funny sometimes. There were two smaller items (in their own individual boxes) inside the larger box, and I have no idea where those may have been originally stored. Oh, as an update, those two millis are no longer wandering around in confusion, so i'm guessing they have settled down and hid somewhere.
 

Polenth

Arachnobaron
Joined
Sep 29, 2018
Messages
460
Does your tank have sealant in the corners to hold the glass together? If so, they can climb that. Multiple millipedes on the loose are more likely to be ones from your own colony, rather than coming via Amazon.
 

feelahthetigress

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 18, 2017
Messages
42
Does your tank have sealant in the corners to hold the glass together? If so, they can climb that. Multiple millipedes on the loose are more likely to be ones from your own colony, rather than coming via Amazon.
Ah, yes, it does. However, it also has a tight-fitting glass lid on it, which is quite heavy (to a millipede anyways). I used to keep snails in it, and they never managed to escape (and they can stick to glass!). It does make me wonder...
 

XxSpiderQueenxX

Arachnobaron
Joined
Feb 14, 2019
Messages
321
If you really wanted, you could count the number of Scarlet pedes you have, subtract 2, and see if that was your original number (assuming none died)
 

davehuth

Arachnoknight
Joined
Dec 24, 2017
Messages
278
My mind has been completely blown by individual critters mysteriously appearing in the wrong enclosures or found walking across the floor of a room on the other side of the house. Some of these escapes should be completely impossible, yet still they somehow happen? That said, I'v e also found some truly bizarre stowaways in the mail as well. More often than not i just blame magical gnomes! :-D
 

feelahthetigress

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 18, 2017
Messages
42
My mind has been completely blown by individual critters mysteriously appearing in the wrong enclosures or found walking across the floor of a room on the other side of the house. Some of these escapes should be completely impossible, yet still they somehow happen? That said, I'v e also found some truly bizarre stowaways in the mail as well. More often than not i just blame magical gnomes! :-D
You know, I'm quite convinced they could be escapees OR mail hitchhikers now!

BTW, they seem to have recovered fully after being put into the viv!
 
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