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Arizona giant centipede (female with eggs)

Scolopendra heros arizonensis

Description:

S. heros has an average length of 6.5 inches (170 mm), but can reach up to 8 in (200 mm). Its trunk bears 21 or 23 pairs of legs. It is aposematically colored, to warn off potential predators, and a number of color variants are known in the species

Habitat:

S. heros is found in northern Mexico and the southern United States, from New Mexico and Arizona in the west, to Arkansas and Missouri in the east. It remains underground on warm days, emerging in cloudy weather.

Notes:

Sorry for the subpar images. I was shooting into a small tank while trying to avoid disturbing her. This specimen was spotted at Tulsa Zoo & Living Museum.

No species ID suggestions

50 Comments (1–25)

drpalombella
drpalombella 3 months ago

Wow! Absolutely amazing! Definitely not gross. If anything, it looks like a super-fancy hors-d'ouvre.

Aaron_G
Aaron_G 11 months ago

Not gross at all! :-) Centipede females are great moms, cleaning and protecting their eggs until they hatch.

Thanks for the link to those photos, Chime. What an outstanding find! :-)

chimetsetan
chimetsetan 11 months ago

Congrats Goody for the SOTD. :) Beautiful picture. Its a lovely find which I have missed back in Chennai. I saw a mother centipede with her hatchlings still clinging on to her like ball of small white centipedes. Maybe they were not ready to leave the nest. :) Check it out.
http://animalsnapshot.blogspot.in/2010/0...

cecihelper1
cecihelper1 11 months ago

Well deserved, Goody!

matimar1
matimar1 11 months ago

Wow,wow and wow!

CarolSnowMilne
CarolSnowMilne 11 months ago

Crazy!! Cool! Kind of gross, but good one!

Liam
Liam 11 months ago

Incredible! Congrats!

Maria dB
Maria dB 11 months ago

Very nice - congratulations!

Harsha Singh
Harsha Singh 11 months ago

Amazing. Congrats.

Leuba
Leuba 11 months ago

Congratulations Goody !

Reza Hashemizadeh
Reza Hashemizadeh 11 months ago

Congratulations Goody on a very well deserved Spotting of the Day :)

KeithRoragen
KeithRoragen 11 months ago

Nice one Goody.

LuisStevens
LuisStevens 11 months ago

Congrats Goody

pouihi
pouihi 11 months ago

What an image!!!

KarenL
KarenL 11 months ago

Well done Aaron! A worthy SOTD!

Aaron_G
Aaron_G 11 months ago

Ashish, I have added this to your mission. Thanks for alerting me to it!

DigantaGogoi
DigantaGogoi 11 months ago

wow.......congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!

williefromwi
williefromwi 11 months ago

wonderful information and series, Goody

Atul
Atul 11 months ago

great spot ! congrats!

Aaron_G
Aaron_G 11 months ago

Thank you all for the kind words. Being the critical guy I am, I wish I could have taken better photos of this event. :-)

Marta, centipede moms roll around their eggs to cradle and protect them. During the incubation process they constantly groom the eggs with their mouthparts, keeping them free of debris and fungus. They remain curled around them the entire time and only move on when they have hatched and crawl free on their own. Sometimes a disturbance will cause her to gobble up the eggs, but other times it's believed they are consumed because they are known to be infertile. She will gain back the energy she lost by laying them, which could prove to be important because she may not eat for weeks while protecting her eggs.

LarryGraziano
LarryGraziano 11 months ago

Cognrats Goody!!! Lovely series!

Argy Bee
Argy Bee 11 months ago

Congrats Goody. Super photos.

Sergio Monteiro
Sergio Monteiro 11 months ago

What a fantastic spotting and photo, Goody. Congrats.

Gerardo Aizpuru
Gerardo Aizpuru 11 months ago

Congratulations Goody what a spotting and photo:):)

Small Wonders
Small Wonders 11 months ago

Congratulations!
Nice spot :)

Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA

Lat: 36.15, Long: -95.99

Spotted on Apr 18, 2012
Submitted on Apr 23, 2012

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