centipede

Hundred feet. Name for an invertebrate arthropod belonging to the class of Chilopoda. It has an elongated flattened body that consists of several segments with each segment bearing a single pair of legs and with each a dorsal and a ventral plate. Most species have a pair of poison claws on their head, used for preying upon insects. These claws are connected to a poison gland that releases a poison when it bites. Its bite is painful and will paralyze its victims. Most centipede species can reach a length of well over 10 centimeters while the Asian Forest Centipede (Scolopendra subspinipes), can grow to a length of up to 38 centimeters. They are among the largest terrestrial invertebrate predators on the planet and are extremely fast, highly aggressive and venomous, with a bite that releases a venom of which one of the major components is a neurotoxin. Their bite is excruciatingly painful and is able to kill even humans. Being feared for centuries, it in Japan inspired the legend of Omukade, a giant man-eating centipede that lives in the mountains and has a weakness to human saliva. Though able to slay even a powerful dragon, it can be killed simply by a weapon dipped in human saliva, i.e. a symbol for the wisdom of the body. The back end of centipedes has a noteworthy pair of legs called the ultimate legs which are not for walking but for defense and mating. Centipedes are nocturnal and live in a range of moist habitats and are typically found in leaf litter, under stones and around deadwood. The variety commonly found in Thailand usually belongs to the family of Scolopendridae, a family of large centipedes and called takaab/takhaab in Thai. Centipedes are reminiscent of millipedes (fig.), but centipedes are insect eaters, whereas millipedes are vegetarians, and while centipedes have just one set of legs per segment, millipedes have two sets of legs per segment, as well as more segments. In China, where the populace is said to eat everything on four legs, except for the table, a subspecies of the Asian Forest Centipede, i.e. the Chinese Red-headed Centipede (Scolopendra subspinipes mutilans), is on the menu and is usually eaten as a snack (fig.). 回