Polyxenidae

All images on this website have been taken in Leicestershire and Rutland by NatureSpot members. We welcome new contributions - just register and use the Submit Records form to post your photos. Click on any image below to visit the species page. The RED / AMBER / GREEN dots indicate how easy it is to identify the species - see our Identification Difficulty page for more information. A coloured rating followed by an exclamation mark denotes that different ID difficulties apply to either males and females or to the larvae - see the species page for more detail.

Centipedes & Millipedes

Both centipedes and millipedes are classified in the sub-phylum myriapoda (meaning many-legged). Centipedes are predatory whilst millipedes are vegetarian! Centipedes have one pair of legs per segment whilst millipedes have two.There are around 53 UK centipede species, and a similar number of millipedes, though some are restricted to specialist habitats and a few invasive species are only found in heated greenhouses.

Click on the headings below to expand/contract the text.

Millipedes

Millipedes are often overlooked and it wasn't until the 20th century that the majority of UK species were identified. A total of 62 species have now been found living in Britain, a small number compared to most invertebrate groups. Some of these 62 species are only found in hothouses and have been introduced with imported plants and soil.

Polyxenidae