Tachypodoiulus niger
EOL Text
Tachypodoiulus niger, known variously as the white-legged snake millipede or the black millipede, is a European species of millipede. It is very similar to other species such as Cylindroiulus londinensis, from which it can be reliably distinguished only by studying the shape of the telson.[2] It occurs in the British Isles, Spain, France, Benelux, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the Czech Republic,[1] and is especially common on chalky and limestone soils.[2]
T. niger has a roughly cylindrical shiny black body, with around 100 pairs of contrasting white legs[3] on its 41–56 body segments.[2] It lives in leaf litter, under bark or in moss, and feeds on encrusting algae, detritus[3] and sometimes fruit such as raspberries.[2] Predators of T. niger include the centipedes Lithobius variegatus and Lithobius forficatus[3] and hedgehogs.[4]
T. niger is most active from one hour after sunset to one hour before sunrise, although in summer it also becomes active in the afternoon.[5] Like many millipedes, T. niger coils itself into a spiral, with its legs on the inside and its head in the centre, when it is threatened,[2] but it can also flee with sidewinding movements.[6]
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Tachypodoiulus niger (Leach 1814)". Fauna Europaea. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e Stuart M. Bennett (2000). "Tachypodoiulus niger".
- ^ a b c "White-legged snake millipede – Tachypodoiulus niger". Natural England. Retrieved June 28, 2007.
- ^ B. Lundrigan & J. Bidlingmeyer (2000). "Erinaceus europaeus: western European hedgehog". Animal Diversity Web. University of Michigan.
- ^ Barundeb Banerjee (1967). "Diurnal and seasonal variations in the activity of the millipedes Cylindroiulus punctatus (Leach), Tachopodoiulus niger (Leach) and Polydesmus angustus Latzel". Oikos 18 (1): 141–144. doi:10.2307/3564643. JSTOR 3564643.
- ^ "Tachypodoiulus niger vs. Julus scandinavius" (in German). diplopoda.de.
| License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ |
| Rights holder/Author | Wikipedia |
| Source | http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tachypodoiulus_niger&oldid=575313158 |
Tachypodoiulus niger is easily recognisable thanks to its white legs contrasting against its very shiny black, narrow trunk.It can vary in size from 15-39mm long.
| License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
| Rights holder/Author | Kelly Inward, Natural History Museum |
| Source | No source database. |
Life cycle:
Tachypodoiulus niger reaches maturity by the second spring after birth, but does not normally begin breeding until the third spring.Larger adult females have been known to last for 9 years.
| License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
| Rights holder/Author | Kelly Inward, Natural History Museum |
| Source | No source database. |
Tachypodoiulus niger is widely distributed across the UK and is one of the most commonly recorded millipedes in Britain and Ireland.
Distribution:
Tachypodoiulus niger is one of the most commonly recorded millipedes in Britain and Ireland.It is one of the four most frequently encountered British millipedes due to its habit of resting under stones, logs, etc.
Habitat:
This millipede is usually found amongst leaf litter, under loose tree bark, in moss or, occasionally indoors.It is very widespread and common in gardens throughout Britain.It is sometimes found at night climbing trees to graze the green algae there and it is the most likely millipede to enter houses or outbuildings where it does no harm.It is a useful creature in the garden for the role it plays in returning decaying vegetation to soil.
Nutrition:
Most millipedes are detritivores, preferring to eat decaying plant material rather than living vegetation.
| License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
| Rights holder/Author | Kelly Inward, Natural History Museum |
| Source | No source database. |
The following is a representative barcode sequence, the centroid of all available sequences for this species.
There are 2 barcode sequences available from BOLD and GenBank. Below is a sequence of the barcode region Cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI or COX1) from a member of the species. See the BOLD taxonomy browser for more complete information about this specimen and other sequences.
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Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 2
Specimens with Barcodes: 7
Species With Barcodes: 1
Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 0
Specimens with Barcodes: 1
Species With Barcodes: 1