Mecistocephalus gigas explained

Mecistocephalus gigas is a species of soil centipede in the Mecistocephalidae family.[1] This genus was described in 1887 by German entomologist Erich Haase.[2] This centipede features 51 pairs of legs rather than the 49 leg pairs usually observed in the genus Mecistocephalus.[3]

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.[4] The posterior segments are black-green with small grains of pigment, which are quite conspicuous on the ultimate legs.[5] The number of pectinate lamellae (comb blades) on the mandibles ranges from 21 to 27, with four or five teeth on the first.[6] The first pair of legs is a third shorter than the next pair.

Distribution

The species occurs in New Guinea and the Maluku Islands.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bonato . L. . Chagas Junior . A. . Edgecombe . G.D. . Lewis . J.G.E. . Minelli . A. . Pereira . L.A. . Shelley . R.M. . Stoev . P. . Zapparoli . M. . 2016 . Mecistocephalus gigas Haase, 1887 . 2024-06-08 . ChiloBase 2.0 - A World Catalogue of Centipedes (Chilopoda).
  2. Haase . Erich . 1887 . Die Indisch-Australischen Myriopoden. I. Chilopoden . Abhandlungen und Berichte des Königl. Zoologischen und Anthropologisch-Etnographischen Museums zu Dresden . 1 . 5 . 1–118 [105] . Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  3. Bonato . L. . Minelli . A. . 2004 . The centipede genus Mecistocephalus Newport 1843 in the Indian Peninsula (Chilopoda Geophilomorpha Mecistocephalidae) . Tropical Zoology . en . 17 . 1 . 15–63 [56] . 10.1080/03946975.2004.10531198 . 0394-6975 . 85304657.
  4. Book: Attems, Carl . Lfg. 52 Myriapoda, 1: Geophilomorpha . De Gruyter . 1929 . 978-3-11-143063-8 . 144 . de . 10.1515/9783111430638.
  5. Attems . Carl . 1915 . Myriopoden von Ceram und WaigeuGesammelt von L. F. De Beaufort I. J. 1909: Mit Tafel I. . Bijdragen tot de Dierkunde . German . 20 . 1 . 2–14 [5] . 10.1163/26660644-02001001 . 0067-8546.
  6. Bonato . Lucio . Foddai . Donatella . Minelli . Alessandro . 2003 . Evolutionary trends and patterns in centipede segment number based on a cladistic analysis of Mecistocephalidae (Chilopoda: Geophilomorpha) . Systematic Entomology . en . 28 . 4 . 539–579 [566] . 10.1046/j.1365-3113.2003.00217.x . 0307-6970.

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