Mar 6, 2012 – Ninety Nine Thump
QUESTION:
Is there a difference between a centipede and a millipede?
ANSWER:
Sorry Jodi, but I had to toss in some fun, and the question is what goes "99 thump, 99 thump" and the answer is a centipede with a wooden leg. Yes, there is a very big difference between centipedes and millipedes and it pays to be able to tell them apart before you pick one up. As it turns out, many centipedes are quite capable of inflicting a painful sting, using the venom glands located in their front pair of legs. These two legs may be mistaken for mandibles, as they are enlarged and curved and pointed at the end, and generally extend across the actual mouthparts. While the venom of a centipede is considered NOT to be life threatening to people, it can cause serious pain and in some sensitive people even a possible allergic response.
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
Is there a difference between a centipede and a millipede?
ANSWER:
Sorry Jodi, but I had to toss in some fun, and the question is what goes "99 thump, 99 thump" and the answer is a centipede with a wooden leg. Yes, there is a very big difference between centipedes and millipedes and it pays to be able to tell them apart before you pick one up. As it turns out, many centipedes are quite capable of inflicting a painful sting, using the venom glands located in their front pair of legs. These two legs may be mistaken for mandibles, as they are enlarged and curved and pointed at the end, and generally extend across the actual mouthparts. While the venom of a centipede is considered NOT to be life threatening to people, it can cause serious pain and in some sensitive people even a possible allergic response.
Centipedes are predators that feed on any other small insects, earthworms, and even small rodents, lizards, or birds if the centipede is large enough. Millipedes, on the other hand, will generally feed on decaying plant materials, sometimes on green plants, and a few may be predatory. They cannot bite or sting, but this does not mean they are defenseless. Many millipedes exude a foul liquid from glands along their body when they are disturbed, and this liquid consists of a mixture of benzoquinones that serve as a very effective insect repellent, helping to keep other predatory insects away from them. This does not work against all enemies though, as the larva of one beetle in the family Phengodidae (lightning beetles) is immune to the repellent and easily burrows right into the millipede to consume it.
To go one step further, large tropical millipedes in the family Polydesmidae actually exude hydrogen cyanide from glands along their body in quantities designed to keep from being eaten, but even potentially enough to kill a bird or rodent.
The difference visually between millipedes and centipedes is the number of legs they have on each body segment - centipedes have 1 pair and millipedes have 2 pairs. The legs of millipedes also are generally much shorter and the result is the animal moves along more slowly and methodically. Many millipedes will roll into a coil when disturbed. Centipedes have much longer legs and can move very rapidly, helpful for a predator that needs to chase down and capture its food. In North America we have the odd "House Centipede", and the legs on this creature, which may be 2 inches in length, are extremely long and thin. When it runs across the floor or wall in a home it looks for all the world like a feather moving along, and this is guaranteed to scare the daylights out of the homeowner.
Some of the largest millipedes are African species that grow to 12 inches in length. Some of the largest centipedes also may be 1 foot long, and in the U.S. the Arizona Giant Centipede is probably our largest species at about 8 inches long and very wide. Despite the name "centi pede", meaning 100 legs, the number of legs on adult centipedes ranges from 30 to over 300.
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