Millipedes in Captivity
Millipedes form part of the order Diplopoda, a group of arthropods characterised by having two pairs of legs per body segment. These segments allow them to roll up as a defense, hiding their softer legs and underside while presenting a armoured carapace to any threats. Many are also masters of chemical warfare, and are able to excrete quite potent chemical concoctions. Depending on the species some of these chemicals can even cause rashes and stain our skin, so it's always best to handle these otherwise gentle beasts with care.
Millipeds are one of the oldest orders of animals, having been around since the Silurian Period - that's around 420 million years ago! Thanks to being around for such a long time, millipeds have diversified to cover almost every continent on Earth, and can be found in almost every enviroment. Here at The legless Millipede we try to work with a nice range of species but almost all the animals we work with come from more humid climates.
Below we will discuss some of the species we work with and the kinds of climates they thrive in.
Archispirostreptus Gigas
Archispirostreptus Gigas. The African Giant. The Giant Train. The giant, the legend.
These are one of the biggest species out there, reaching enormous sizes upwards of 20cm long. Easily the star of the show, A. Gigas can be the real star of any collection. These guys stand out in another way too - they prefer fruits to the usual food substrate. If you've read our care guide you'll know most millipeds live off detritus from trees, leaves and rotten wood. While A. Gigas will happily eat these things we find they show a real preference for fruits and vegetables, suggesting to us that part of their impressive size can be attributed to their slightly different dietary preferences.
As the name implies these guys come from Africa, and imported specimens come from all across this massive continent, but are often collected in Ghana. In the wild they are found in subtropical forests with distinct wet and dry seasons, so replicating this in captivity can help ensure their longevity. They can live an incredibly long time for insects, and are thought to be able to pass 10 years old! Ours are given a simulated wet and dry season each year, by reducing the amount of water we add to the enclosure over winter and allowing it to cool slightly while doing the opposite over the summer months - lots of "rain" and higher temperatures. We keep them at 22-25 degrees Celcius, with peaks in summer at 27-28.
These are one of the biggest species out there, reaching enormous sizes upwards of 20cm long. Easily the star of the show, A. Gigas can be the real star of any collection. These guys stand out in another way too - they prefer fruits to the usual food substrate. If you've read our care guide you'll know most millipeds live off detritus from trees, leaves and rotten wood. While A. Gigas will happily eat these things we find they show a real preference for fruits and vegetables, suggesting to us that part of their impressive size can be attributed to their slightly different dietary preferences.
As the name implies these guys come from Africa, and imported specimens come from all across this massive continent, but are often collected in Ghana. In the wild they are found in subtropical forests with distinct wet and dry seasons, so replicating this in captivity can help ensure their longevity. They can live an incredibly long time for insects, and are thought to be able to pass 10 years old! Ours are given a simulated wet and dry season each year, by reducing the amount of water we add to the enclosure over winter and allowing it to cool slightly while doing the opposite over the summer months - lots of "rain" and higher temperatures. We keep them at 22-25 degrees Celcius, with peaks in summer at 27-28.
Chicobolus Spingergius
A species from America, known by the common name Florida Ivory. These guys are some of the nicest coloured millipeds out there, with an amazing black and white banded pattern, like a Piano!
We find they are also one of the easiest species to keep in captivity, needing very little special treatment or conditions. They are nowhere near as large as their distant cousins A. Gigas, but still, reach impressive sizes as adults and do it much faster too. Easy to keep, easy to breed, and happy to eat pretty much anything, these make a fantastic first step into milliped keeping. We keep ours around 22 degrees Celcius, but over summer they get much warmer, even with their heating off. |
Tonkinbolus caudulanus |
Aphislogolniulus polleni (Madagascar) |
Anadenobolus milicornis (Jamacia) |
Centrobolus Sp. (Mozambique) |
Pill Millipeds
Glomeris marginata (Germany) |
Glomeris pustulata (Germany) |
Zephronia sp. "Thailand"
|
Polydesmids
Coromus diaphorus |
Coromus vittatus vittatus (Nigeria) |
Polydesmus angustus (We think. UK) |