A new species of large predatory centipede discovered in Japan
Japanese scientists have discovered a new species of millipedes in the Ryuku archipelago. This event in the country has been waiting for 143 years, writes the Tokyo Metropolitan University.
Scolopendra boasts huge dimensions for its species: it reaches 20 centimeters in length and 2 centimeters in thickness. It is the largest specimen of its kind in Japan. Scientists have found that this is the third species of the genus Scolopendra that can swim. The insect is a predator and behaves quite aggressively. The new scolopendra species was named Scolopendra alcyona Tsukamoto & Shimano.
On the island of the Ryuku archipelago, it lives along the streams in the jungle, which is rarely visited by people. The predator attacks large freshwater shrimp, depriving local fishermen of the catch.
Recall that in 2019 in Africa, scientists discovered a new species of spiders with a horn. And in the summer of 2020, Dutch scientists named a new species of parasite wasps in honor of the actor Idris Elba.
