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Mecistocephalus gigas
Species of centipede From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Mecistocephalus gigas is a species of soil centipede in the Mecistocephalidae family.[2] This species was described in 1887 by German entomologist Erich Haase.[3][2] This centipede features 51 pairs of legs rather than the 49 leg pairs usually observed in the genus Mecistocephalus.[3][4]
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Description
This species has 51 pairs of legs and can reach 105 mm in length. The head is a dark brown-red, but the trunk is yellow with finely distributed grains of dark pigment.[5] The posterior segments are black-green with small grains of pigment, which are quite conspicuous on the ultimate legs.[6] The number of pectinate lamellae (comb blades) on the mandibles ranges from 21 to 27, with four or five teeth on the first.[5][7] The first pair of legs is a third shorter than the next pair.[5]
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Distribution
The species occurs in New Guinea and the Maluku Islands.[2]
References
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