The ‘horrific’ new giant swimming centipede we reported on last year, which swims as well as it scurries over land, has won an award as a 2017 Top Ten New Species.
The award was given to Chulalongkorn University for their two years of research on the venomous creepy-crawler, but National Geographic reported that the species was actually first spotted by George Beccaloni, from the Natural History Museum of London, who was on his honeymoon in Thailand back in 2001.
The carnivorous Scolopendra cataracta is the world’s first amphibious centipede. It can grow as long as 20 centimeters. Unlike most centipedes that creep around on land, this one can eat small water animals as it swims, reported Bangkok Post.
Chulalongkorn researcher Warut Siriwut said that the new little winner has pale yellow little legs. The species has now been identified in Laos and Vietnam as well as Thailand.
Beccaloni said of the creature, “It was pretty horrific-looking: very big with long legs and a horrible dark, greenish-black color.”
What shocked him most was that the thing quickly “darted into nearby water, unusual behavior for a centipede.” He watched it swim like an eel with powerful, full-body undulations. When removed from the water, droplets rolled off of the centipede’s green-black back so that it was completely dry as it creeped away.
Gross.
Scolopendra cataracta and Chulalongkorn won the award from the International Institute for Species Exploration.
The University’s Prof. Somsak Panha said yesterday that his faculty discovered the winning specimen enjoying itself at a waterfall in Surat Thani’s Khao Sok National Park in 2015.
Congrats! We don’t hope to meet you soon Scolopendra cataracta!
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