Scolopendra gigantea Temporal range: Pleistocene-recent[1]
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Myriapoda |
Class: | Chilopoda |
Order: | Scolopendromorpha |
Family: | Scolopendridae |
Genus: | Scolopendra |
Species: | S. gigantea
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Binomial name | |
Scolopendra gigantea |
Scolopendra gigantea, also known as the Peruvian giant yellow-leg centipede or Amazonian giant centipede, is a centipede in the genus Scolopendra. It is the largest centipede species in the world, with a length exceeding 30 centimetres (12 in).[2] Specimens may have 21 or 23 segments.[3] It is found in various places throughout South America and the extreme south Caribbean, where it preys on a wide variety of animals, including other sizable arthropods, amphibians, mammals and reptiles.[4]