In some places, yellow-spotted millipedes can reach densities of 20-90 individuals per square meter, an unusually high density for millipedes in a conifer forest. Photo © Lisa Feldkamp / The Nature ConservancyĪbundant may be an understatement for the yellow-spotted millipede. Cyanide millipede taken at Cape Lookout State Park in Oregon. But scientists found that the millipedes are immune to cyanide - able to process it and convert it into harmless chemicals. The threat is enough to protect these abundant arthropods from most predators (they do have a beetle nemesis).Ĭyanide is so toxic to most living organisms that it was once thought that cyanide millipedes were running the risk of killing themselves each time released this secretion that they must close off the openings that they use to breathe in order to survive. Similar cyanide producing millipedes in the Appalachians can produce 18 times the amount of the toxin needed to kill a pigeon.
This amount is lethal, however, to birds and rodents.
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The amount secreted by an individual millipede is not enough to seriously harm a human, though it may stain the skin or burn and blister if you’re sensitive (wash your hands if you handle one). If you were to pick up a yellow-spotted millipede, it would likely curl into a spiral and exude hydrogen cyanide on you, accompanied by the strong scent of toasted almonds (that’s the smell of cyanide).
Strange and Unbelievable Facts About Shrews.Death and Drama Among the Cicada Killers.Murder Hornets? Here Are 5 Other Scary Invasive Insects.Just like the bright colors of the monarch butterfly, and other aposematic species, these yellow spots are a warning to potential predators – “Don’t mess with me!” Related Articles That’s the yellow-spotted millipede ( Harpaphe haydeniana) - AKA almond-scented millipede, AKA cyanide millipede. Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.Keep an eye on the ground and any decaying trees as you’re walking the trails of the Pacific Northwest and you’re likely to see bright yellow spots moving along the ground, look closer and you’ll notice those spots are on the “keels” of a dark millipede about 2 inches long.Britannica Beyond We’ve created a new place where questions are at the center of learning.100 Women Britannica celebrates the centennial of the Nineteenth Amendment, highlighting suffragists and history-making politicians.
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