Centipedes

 

So you want to know about Centipedes?  You've come to the right place.  Information can be found in the Care Sheets.  Pictures can be found in the Gallery.  Questions can find answers in the Forum.  Please feel free to use all of them at your leisure.  Galleries will be updated as more pictures are received.  Care Sheets will be updated as they are written.

General Information

Buying a Centipede

1.    See if the centipede is active.  If the centipede is not active, prod it lightly with a pen or other long object, not your fingers.  The centipede should be quick to move or turn around and attack.  A slowly reacting centipede may be sick.

2.    Centipedes are a moisture dependent species, even the desert varieties.  Check for a water dish or at the very least a moist substrate.  Centipedes are quick to desiccate (dry out) without a source of moisture

3.    Look to see if there is a place for the centipede to hide or if there is enough substrate for the centipede to burrow if it wishes.  Without this, the centipede may be stressed and a stressed centipede is an unhealthy one.

4.    Ask the salesperson if he knows the species of the centipede.  Although centipedes are kept pretty much the same, some have much more potent venom then others.

5.    Don't bother to ask the sex of the centipede.  The only true way of knowing is if the centipede has laid eggs, or by dissection.

Handling

Don't

Seriously though, certain species of centipedes are know to have some of the most painful venom in existence, matching that of the male platypus.  Arachnopets does not recommend the handling of these awesome arthropods.  It's a sure way to possibly harm your pet and cause yourself a MASSIVE amount of pain.  Not even morphine is known to help the pain caused by the envenomation from a centipede bite.  Now that you have been warned, if you are still masochistic enough to want to handle your centipede here are 2 tips:

1.    Do not block the centipede.  Obstruction of its destination can be considered threatening and it may attack.

2.    Do not grab or pull the centipede from the rear if it is trying to get away.  This is a good way for you to get bitten when the centipede turns around to attack whatever it is that's stopping it from it's appointed course.

If you need to move your centipede for any reason (cage maintenance or rehousing) there are two generally safe methods for doing so:

1.    Catch and Carry
     There are two ways to do this.  Both involving containers.  First is to take a deli dish or similar container and to place    it over the centipede and place a piece of cardboard underneath the container thereby trapping the centipede.  Note:  Centipedes are notorious for getting out of the smallest cracks.  Make sure you have the cardboard tightly against whatever container you are using.  The other way is to take a tube as long as the centipede that is capped on one end and herd the centipede into it and then to cap the open end.

2.    Snake Hook
       This method is generally only used with the larger centipedes as the small ones are too small for this to be effective.  If you use this method, make sure that you keep the centipede low to the ground so if it falls off the hook, it will not be harmed by the fall.  You must also be careful with this method as the centipedes have been known to climb the handle of the hook.

Once again, Arachnopets does not advocate the handling of these exquisite arthropods.

Molting

Centipedes, like other arthropods, are the proud owners of exoskeletons.  What this means is that to grow, they have to undergo a process known as molting.  Molting is where the centipede will grow a new exoskeleton underneath the old one and when it is ready, shed (molt) the old exoskeleton.  This is accomplished by a splitting of the cuticle (exoskeleton) on the sides of the dorsal plate on the head in front of the first segment (tergite) of the body (trunk) and then extracting itself through this opening in the old exoskeleton.  One sign that your centipede is about to molt is a lack of appetite.  Another is a sluggish or inactive centipede.  There also may be changes in appearance such as a thick and waxy look to the sides of your centipede.  You centipede may also seem to be growing a neck.  What is meant by this is that the head will have a distended appearance from the trunk.  You may see a gap between the head and the first tergite as well as between other tergites on the trunk.  This is due to the forming exoskeleton stretching and displacing the old one.  Centipedes in captivity will commonly turn around and eat their exuvia.  This is most likely to regain some of the strength used in the molting process.  This is important to you the keeper because a freshly molted centipede needs time for the exoskeleton to harden (sclerotise) before having prey introduced as it is vulnerable at this time.  One sign of a freshly molted centipede is, of course, a noticeable increase in size.  Another is a lighter colored centipede than you started with.  The lighter color is due to the centipede having recently molted and will change back to the normal color as the exoskeleton sclerotises.  If you believe that your centipede has molted, it is best to wait 5 to 10 days before introducing prey into the enclosure as to be sure that the centipede's exoskeleton has completely hardened.  If you are able to retrieve your centipede's exuvia it will be compressed, much like an accordion, and you will have to stretch it out.  If you are unlucky enough to purchase a centipede with it's fangs clipped, rest securely in the knowledge that they will regenerate with it's next molt.