Amazonian giant centipede

Scolopendra gigantea · The Amazonian giant centipede is the largest centipede in the world, living in northern South America and the extreme south Caribbean.

Also called Peruvian giant yellow-leg centipede.

Amazonian giant centipede
Photo: Katka Nemčoková, CC BY-SA 3.0
Amazonian giant centipede
Photo: Syrio, CC BY-SA 4.0
Amazonian giant centipede
Photo: Faunaram, CC BY 4.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumArthropoda
ClassChilopoda
OrderScolopendromorpha
FamilyScolopendridae
GenusScolopendra
SpeciesScolopendra gigantea

Where it lives

Venezuela, Colombia and the Caribbean islands of Trinidad, Aruba and Curaçao.

Fun facts

  • It hunts bats by climbing cave ceilings and holding its heavier prey with only a few legs still attached to the ceiling.
  • This centipede can overpower surprising prey, including tarantulas, scorpions, sparrow-sized birds and mice.
  • Its venom is delivered through a modified pair of legs underneath its head.
  • It can eat snakes up to 25 centimetres (10 inches) long and frogs up to 9.5 centimetres long.

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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).