Cormocephalus rubriceps

Cormocephalus rubriceps
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Myriapoda
Class: Chilopoda
Order: Scolopendromorpha
Family: Scolopendridae
Genus: Cormocephalus
Species:
C. rubriceps
Binomial name
Cormocephalus rubriceps
(Newport, 1843)

Cormocephalus rubriceps, also known as the Hura[1][2] or giant centipede,[3] is a large centipede of the family Scolopendridae. It is native to Australia and New Zealand, where it is found in the North Island and on islands off the North Island.[3] At up to 25 cm in length, it is the largest centipede in New Zealand.

Giant Centipede carved or pare carved on display at the New Zealand Arthropod Collection at Landcare Research, Auckland.

Taxonomy

Cormocephalus rubriceps

This species was given its Latin name by George Newport in 1843 as Scolopendra rubriceps.[4] Newport published a description of the species under that name in 1845.[5]

Description

This species is very large, sometimes exceeding 10cm in length. The body is typically dark red while the legs are coloured yellow fading into green.[6]

References

  1. ^ "hura". Māori dictionary. 2021. Archived from the original on 2017-04-12. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  2. ^ Miller, David (1952). "The Insect People of the Maori". The Journal of the Polynesian Society. 61 (1/2): 1–61. ISSN 0032-4000. JSTOR 20703320.
  3. ^ a b "Giant centipede". Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research. Retrieved 2020-07-14.
  4. ^ Newport, George (February 1844). "XIII.— A List of the species of Myriapoda, Order Chilopoda, contained in the Cabinets of the British Museum, with synoptic descriptions of forty-seven new Species". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 13 (82): 94–101. doi:10.1080/03745484409442576. ISSN 0374-5481.
  5. ^ Newport, George (1845). "Monograph of the Class Myriapoda, Order Chilopoda". Transactions of the Linnean Society of London. 19 (4): 349–440. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.1842.tb00370.x – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  6. ^ Archey, G. "Notes on New Zealand Chilopoda". Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 53: 181–195.
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