First time recording a large centipede in Vietnam

The findings of the research team from the Vietnam – Russia Tropical Center and the Vietnam Museum of Nature have just been published in the journal Far Eastern Entomologist. This is the first time this species has been recorded in Vietnam, marking the expansion of its distribution range eastward in Southeast Asia.

Centipede Scolopendra fat belongs to the family Scolopendridae with an average length of about 5.5 cm, maximum length up to 6.5 cm. The first antennal segments of this species are hairless, while the later segments are covered with small downy hairs. The head is dark green in front and turns pale yellow in the back, giving the species its distinctive color. Additionally, their terminal limbs are long and thin.

Master Le Xuan Son, representative of the research team, said that before being discovered in Vietnam, Scolopendra pinguis had been recorded in Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. This new discovery shows that this centipede species is also distributed in the limestone forest ecosystem of Phong Nha – Ke Bang, areas with high humidity and thick leaf litter, especially in bamboo forests and regular forests on rocky substrates. lime.

Specimens collected in Phong Nha – Ke Bang showed slight differences compared to samples previously found in Thailand and Laos. Scattered small holes appeared on the back and abdomen of specimens in Vietnam, while in Laos and Thailand this feature was not observed (according to Siriwut, 2016). This highlights the morphological and genetic diversity of the species in different populations.

The specimens are currently fixed and preserved in 70-80% alcohol at the Vietnam – Russia Tropical Center and Vietnam Museum of Nature for detailed analysis.

Master Le Xuan Son said that the recognition of the Scolopendra pinguis species shows that the centipede fauna in Vietnam still has many undiscovered species. Further research into the taxonomy of this group promises to yield many new discoveries.

In 2022, the Vietnam – Russia Tropical Center also discovered centipedes Scolopendra cataracta belongs to the genus Scolopendra, Surname Scolopendridae at Ta Dung National Park, Dak Nong province. This species has a body length of 24 cm (including antennae and last legs is 32 cm). The average width of the stem segments is 1.6 cm, the largest reaches 1.8 cm.

Currently, large centipede species belong to the genus Scolopendra In general, in Vietnam, hunting is quite common to serve the needs of medicine, ornamental animals or as food for domestic animals. This leads to a significant decline in the numbers of these species. Species recording adds evidence of biodiversity in Vietnam and conservation.