Scutigera on DeviantArthttps://www.deviantart.com/scutigera/art/Scutigera-coleoptrata-98145033Scutigera

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Scutigera coleoptrata

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On the morning of September 16, I was in my room at college when this huge house centipede scurried across the floor. I'd never seen a house centipede quite so big, so I had to catch it. This was not easy; house centipedes are very fast-moving. After that I transferred it to a container to share it with the students in my Animal Behavior class. Later in the day I held the house centipede for a photo session. It was not very cooperative, as it kept running all over my arms. Occasionally it would stop on my hand, allowing me enough time to take one or two pictures that weren't blurry. This picture was the best of the lot.
Given my username, it's only fitting that I have at least one picture of a house centipede (Scutigera coleoptrata) to show.

Update: I've named the centipede Sentinel Cortez and am trying to keep it as a pet. I've housed it with several earwigs (one is male; the others are juveniles whose sex cannot yet be determined). My hope is that the earwigs will form a reproductive colony that will provide Cortez with a steady food source. So far, however, Cortez has made no apparent attempt to eat them. It either ignores the earwigs or scurries away when the largest male pinches its legs with his forceps.
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14mpr3y's avatar
They're so cute.