Scientists Name Newly Discovered Cave Centipede After Hades
Posted on July 3, 2015
A new species of cave dwelling centipede has been discovered by members of the Croatian Biospeleological Society in three caves in Croatia. The caves were found in the Velebit mountain. The centipede was found as deep as 1100 meters.
The scientists have named the centipede Geophilus hadesi after Hades, the Greek god of the Underworld. The centipede has powerful jaws with poison glands. It also has long curved claws so it can tightly grasp and hold onto its prey. The scientists say the Hades centipede is one of the top predators in the Croatian caves. The centipede belongs to the order geophilomorphs.
Pavel Stoev, the lead author of the study, says in a statement, "When I first saw the animal and its striking appearance, I immediately realized that this is a new, hitherto unnamed and highly adapted to cave environment species. This finding comes to prove once again how little we know about the life in caves, where even in the best prospected areas, one can still find incredible animals."
The photo below shows scientists exploring the entrance to the cave Munižaba, one of the three caves containing the Hades centipede. A research paper on the new species was published here in the journal, ZooKeys.
