The benefits and harms of the drupe millipedes

Some people are afraid of seeing insects. In scientific circles, it is called insectophobia or entomophobia. There is a version that the fear of arthropods is inherent in genetic memory and has been preserved since ancient times, when insects were huge and posed a serious danger to humans. One of such representatives of the fauna is the drupe millipede, whose appearance evokes fear and horror. However, if you get acquainted with its eating habits, lifestyle, a many-legged creature will seem completely harmless and even useful.

Drupe millipedes in the natural environment

Kostyanki is a numerous family from the class of Godopods, in which there are about 1000 species, even the experts find it difficult to name the exact number. Geophiles differ from their closest relatives by fewer legs, and from scolopendras by small dimensions.

What does the drupe look like?

Drupe millipedes inhabit everywhere. In the daytime, they hide in shelters: under fallen leaves, in a litter of moss and plant debris, in stumps, between stones - where there is enough moisture. They do not bury into the deep layers of the soil, but due to the flattened shape, the bodies can move freely in narrow tunnels.
The body color is predominantly brown, the color saturation depends on the habitat and age. The body of an adult drupe consists of 35-49 segments coated with durable chitin, most often individuals with 15 dorsal scutes are found. However, the number of walking legs does not exceed 15 pairs.

A characteristic feature of the entire class of the leg-footed - the first pair of legs is transformed into the maxilla, fused into a plate, resembling a lip with sickle-like claws in appearance.

With the help of claws, near the apex of which there is a duct of the poisonous gland, the canine centipede grabs prey and injects poison into it to kill it. Simple eyes are also located on the head, in some species they are numerous faceted eyes. Despite the abundance of eyes, in ordinary drupes there are about 40 of them, insects see poorly. The function of the organs of touch, vision is performed by the antennae.

15 pairs of legs do not prevent millipedes from moving fast. If necessary, they show remarkable sprinting abilities and overcome up to 30-40 cm per second. Drupe can rightly be called long-livers - the life cycle is 6-7 years.

Power Features

By nature, brown millipede drupes are a predator. It feeds on small insects:

• midges;
• mosquitoes;
• small spiders;
• bugs, flies.

The peak of activity occurs at night. He can watch his victim not only on the ground, but also from under cover.

Drupe resistant to low temperatures. In the cold season, they successfully attack caterpillars, leafworms, and other pests in suspended animation. In summer or spring, the struggle between the caterpillar and the centipede would not end in favor of the latter.

In a limited space or in the absence of a main food supply, the leg-millipedes can feed on young leaves, thereby damaging the plants.

How are drupe breeds

Matrimonial games and the reproduction of millipedes from the family of drupes are a very exciting process. According to the observations of entomologists, the male pats his antennae, touches the female and backs away, as if inviting the "lady" to follow him. Prior to this, he previously weaves a web and lays spermatophores on it - small lumps with seminal fluid. Females moving along the web, stumble on capsules with spermatozoa and collect them through special limbs located on the last segments of the body.

In the absence of favorable conditions, the seed material is stored in the body of a female individual for several months. After fertilization, the drupe millipede lays eggs, covers them with a special secret to prevent drying, wraps around them and protects them until the younger generation appears.

After 10-15 days, larvae emerge from the eggs, outwardly very similar to their parents, but with a lighter color and smaller size. Females continue to take care of babies after their birth.

Unlike adults, the newborn larva has only 7 pairs of legs. In the process of growing up, young growth undergoes several molts. After each change of chitinous cover, the number of legs and dorsal scutes increases.

It is interesting that limb regeneration is characteristic of drupes. If the millipede has lost one of them, then in the next molt she has a new paw.

Is a drupe millipede dangerous for humans

If you take a multi-legged insect in your hands, it begins to wriggle and twist in an arc. Drupe is not able to bite a person, since its oral apparatus does not allow piercing the thick skin of a person.

In home gardens, millipedes benefit by destroying garden pests. The only ones who are often dissatisfied with the appearance of drupes are flower growers. The pest of the centipede falls into flowerpots with unprocessed soil, gets into the pots when they are in the fresh air, for example, in the summer season in the country house, garden. Having exterminated all small insects in the soil, the drupe has no choice but to eat roots, shoots of plants.

How to deal with drupes in flowers

Millipedes love high humidity, dampness. The easiest way to get rid of them is to reduce watering and sprinkle the soil with wood ash. If these manipulations did not help, then it is worth moving on to more decisive measures:

• manual collection of drupes; to facilitate the process, the pot is placed in water for 1-2 hours and pop-up pests are collected;
• slices of potatoes, carrots are laid out on the soil surface as bait - if millipedes are flattered by vegetables, pick them up by hand;
• plant transplantation into new soil;
• radical measure - treatment with insecticides, the working solution is prepared as for spraying and in accordance with the instructions, the procedure is repeated after 2 weeks.

Millipede drupes have their own biological enemies: birds, small mammals, reptiles, predator beetles.