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Polydesmida
Sign in to savePolydesmida (from the Greek poly "many" and desmos "bond") is the largest order of millipedes, with more than 5,000 species, including all the millipedes reported to produce hydrogen cyanide (HCN). This order is also the most diverse of the millipede orders in terms of morphology. Millipedes in this order are found in all regions of the world other than Antarctica.
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7 sectionsContents
- Description
- Variation
- Development
- Ecology
- Classification
- References
- External links
Polydesmida (from the Greek poly "many" and desmos "bond") is the largest order of millipedes, with more than 5,000 species, including all the millipedes reported to produce hydrogen cyanide (HCN). This order is also the most diverse of the millipede orders in terms of morphology. Millipedes in this order are found in all regions of the world other than Antarctica.
==Description== Members of the order Polydesmida are also known as flat-backed millipedes, because on most species, each body segment has wide lateral keels known as paranota. These keels are produced by the posterior half (metazonite) of each body ring behind the collum. Polydesmids have no eyes, and vary in length from 1.4 to 134 mm. Many of the larger species show bright coloration patterns which warn predators of their toxic secretions.