Spirostreptida

Not to be confused with Spirobolida.
Spirostreptida
Orthoporus sp. (Spirostreptidae) from North America
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Diplopoda
Subclass: Chilognatha
Infraclass: Helminthomorpha
Superorder: Juliformia
Order: Spirostreptida
Brandt, 1833
Families

10: see text.

Spirostreptida is an order of long, cylindrical millipedes. There are approximately 1000 described species,[1] making Spirostrepida the second largest order of millipedes after Polydesmida.

Description

Spirostreptida are generally large, long and cylindrical, with 30 to 90 body rings. Eyes are present in most.[2] This order contains the longest millipedes known: the giant African millipedes of the genus Archispirostreptus that may exceed 30 centimetres (12 in).[2]

Distribution

Spirostrepitda contains mainly tropical species, and occurs in Africa, Southern Asia to Japan, Australia, and the Western Hemisphere from the United States to Argentina.[3]

Classification

The order comprises two suborders, Cambalidea and Spirostreptidea, the latter further divided into two superfamilies.[1]

Cambala minor (Cambalidae), a cave-millipede from eastern North America

Suborder Cambalidea

Cambalidae
Cambalopsidae (includes the former Glyphiulidae and Pericambalidae)[1]
Choctellidae
Iulomorphidae
Pseudonannolenidae

Suborder Spirostreptidea

Superfamily Odontopygoidea
Atopogestidae
Odontopygidae
Superfamily Spirostreptoidea
Adiaphorostreptidae
Harpagophoridae
Spirostreptidae

Select species

References

  1. 1 2 3 Shear, W. (2011). "Class Diplopoda de Blainville in Gervais, 1844. In: Zhang, Z.-Q. (Ed.) Animal biodiversity: An outline of higher-level classification and survey of taxonomic richness" (PDF). Zootaxa 3148: 159–164.
  2. 1 2 "Diagnostic features of Millipede Orders" (PDF). Milli-PEET Identification Tables. The Field Museum, Chicago. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  3. Shelley, Rowland M. (1999). "Centipedes and Millipedes with Emphasis on North American Fauna". The Kansas School Naturalist 45 (3): 1–16.

External links


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