Myriapod Madness!!!

I've recently gone on a bit of a myriapod kick, so I thought I'd post about some of the stuff I've caught over the past couple weeks.

First off, let's start with my Polydesmus sp. This small Polydesmid has been introduced into North America from Europe, along with several other invertebrates, including some other myriapods. They are commonly found in backyards across America, and after finding a couple in my backyard I have decided to keep them.

I currently have two, but I will try to catch more this week. I am keeping them in a cage filled with a substrate of coconut fiber and long fibered sphagnum moss, and there is a layer of dead leaves on top. They shouldn't need rotten wood, seeing as there is none to be found in my backyard and they are pretty abundant there. I feed them the dead leaves, as well as dog food occasionally.

Here are some pictures of them:

Hopefully I can find more and get them breeding!

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I've also found some small Julid millipedes in my backyard, I believe these are another European species that has been introduced to America, Brachyiulus sp. I will be posting some pics on Bugguide.net, hopefully they will be able to tell what species it is.

I caught six of them a couple of days ago in my backyard, and have put them in a small cage full of coconut fiber and dead leaves. There are a few isopods in that cage, they should co-exist together just fine, I find them together in the wild all the time. I am feeding them the dead leaves as well as some dog food.

Here are some pictures of them:

The cage

With six I should be able to breed them, though I may catch a few more, just to be safe.

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Now let's move on to the centipedes! I found a brown stone centipede, Lithobius forficatus the other day under a piece of wood. I have housed it in a deli cup full of coconut fiber and dead leaves, and have offered it dog food and a live roach nymph. It ate neither, but once I killed the roach nymph it ate it.

Here are some pictures of it:

The cage

Hopefully I can catch more, so that I can try to breed them!

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I also caught a small Lithobiomorph, whether it is a immature L.forficatus or something else, I don't know yet. It is in a small deli cup filled with coconut fiber and dead leaves, and has been eating small pre-killed mealworms. Hopefully I can raise it to maturity, it has already molted once in my care!

Here are some pics:

The cage

Hopefully it continues to do well in my care!

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Here's a little update on my Scolopendra polymorpha "Rio Grand". It has been doing well, it has made itself a burrow that it refuses to come out of, even at night. This may be a sign of molting, so I'll be keeping my eyes peeled that's for sure.

Anyway, here is a picture of the cage:

Since we are on the subject of myriapods, if you guys didn't know, Mike's House of A Thousand Legs has opened up, and it is quite the site! There is a video about the site opening up here, and there is a giveaway going on as well! It is the only web store devoted to myriapods, with a focus on centipedes in particular. I suggest you guys check it out, and get yourself a centipede or two! ;)

Well guys I hoped you enjoyed this post, and I'll see you all next time! :)