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Giant Desert CentipedeGiant Sonoran CentipedeGiant North American Centipede Family: Scolopendridae
Latest Reader Comment - See More Just found one here in Lawton Oklahoma, 6 inches long, red head, gross.... (more) Sandy 2008-10-08
A giant centipede that can grow up to 8", the Giant Desert Centipede is quite pretty and attractive, BUT... it has a very unattractive bite!The Giant Desert Centipede is a large species of centipede and many keepers believe it is one of the most beautiful. They are hardy and easy to keep. This is a relatively calm species and is handled by experienced keepers. But, we do not recommend handling any centipedes. Caution: The bite of all large centipedes are potentially medically serious! For more Information on keeping centipedes see:
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Description:
Three subspecies of Scolopendra heros are currently recognized.
All subspecies have 26 to 30 segments in their antennae (generally 26). The first three to five segments are smooth. The head is finely punctuated with two faint sulci, or grooves. The first pair of legs have two tarsal spines and all of the rest have only one. All three subspecies reach 7 to 8” (18 - 20 cm) as adults.
Care and Feeding:
Feed crickets and roaches once a week. Once a month feed a small pink mouse. For more information on feeding see, Centipede Care: Feeding
Environment:
A large enclosure that offers plenty of floor space and a deep (4”+) substrate of damp sand and peat moss is ideal. This species will spend most of its time buried in the substrate with only the tips of the back legs or its antennae above ground. Also offer a few well-placed pieces of cork bark, bark, or a sturdy slate shelter to keep specimens settled. For more information on environment see, Centipede Care: Housing
Temperature and Humidity requirements:
As typical of a desert species, the Giant Desert Centipede will do fine in the 80° to 85° F range and with a humidity of 50 to 65%.
Handling:
We do not recommend handling any centipedes. Despite photos of “daredevils” (goof balls) handling large specimens, all Scolopendra are capable of delivering a very painful venomous “pinch”.
Large specimens should be considered medically serious and some people with reactions to insect venom and those with small children should be very cautious when keeping large Scolopendra species.
Availability:
The Giant Desert Centipede is commonly available in the spring and summer from invert collectors in the Southwestern United States. From these collectors they get spread to dealers throughout the country and they are usually inexpensive. They are hardy and easy to keep and will no doubt be captive-bred in the future.
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| Latest Comments |
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| Just found one here in Lawton Oklahoma, 6 inches long, red head, gross.
2008-10-08 |
| We have killed at least 10 to 15 this year alone south of Wyandotte Okla here on Grand Lake
2008-06-27 |
| I am surprised that this is a native species! I found a red-head near the spillway of West Lake Ponca in Ponca City, OK. They are quite impressive and extremely fast for their size. It took shelter before I could photograph or collect it for further study.
2008-06-11 |
| We had just moved into an old Adobe house in santa fe, new mexico. Once we had all the furniture moved in and just got comfortable, I thought a baby snake, almost a foot long was slithering through my living room. Imagine my horror when I realized it was a " huge " centipede, moving very fast, making for a crack in the wall. I stood up yelling, and stomped on it. I have a size 12 boot, and I kid you not, my foot moved while it was still on top of the thing. It looked dead, bright yellow underneath, cause it had rolled over. I got a standard peice of printer paper to put it underneath the centipede, wanting to show it to my partner. It flipped over and started crawling up my arm, again, shrieking, I dropped it, picked up another shoe and what I thought, beat it to death. Again it " played dead " and flipped over and preceeded to make for its crack in the wall. Finally, I found a bucket with sand in it and crushed it. It was awful. Months later, we saw another one, but couldn't catch it. I was worried it would crawl on us in our sleep, believe me, there were many sleepless nights after seeing its " mate " and not catching it.
2008-01-03 |
| We just had a huge freak-out about one of these things, measuring at least 8 inches. But he's no longer with us. They are pesky & rather creepy creatures when they are not wanted.
2007-11-14 |
| Some of the coolest comments: |
| Red-headed centipedes are common north of Dallas in the crosstimbers area--we've seen them as big as 8" in our yard in Oak Point. They're not just limited to New Mexico and points west! 2007-10-27 |
Author: Russ Gurley
Edited by Animal-World.
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