Millipede: An insect with Stinky defense

• They have 750 Legs
• A millipede can produce hydrogen cyanide
• Their defense secretions are really for smaller animals

Millipedes are tricky. For starters they look wormy, but they’re not even insects—they’re arthropods, more closely related to crabs and spiders. Their name is
deceptive, too: Their legs number about 750 (not the thousand you’d guess). Despite their horror movie appearance, they’re leaf eaters that don’t bite people.

Millipedes have a number of predators, including lizards, birds, and insects, and one of their defenses is to curl up into a ball (which, ironically, makes them look better, even beautiful — at least, to this human eye). Some, though, also release a noxious defensive spray that can irritate skin, harm eyes, and leave a horrible odor on its assailant.

Paul Marek of the Department of Entomology at Virginia Tech told National Geographic that millipedes have about 30 different chemical secretions, so what you get depends on which type you encounter.

These secretions can include hydrogen cyanide. You might want to watch out for two of the cooler-looking ones: Apheloria virginiensis (which Marek says has a nice odor, like cherry cola) releases cyanide, and Narceus americanus releases benzoquinone that can stain your hands. Just ask our intrepid editor.

“Their defense secretions are really for smaller animals,” so if a bird picks them up they’ll get irritated and put them down. If you pick them up, it’s probably best just to wash your hands.

“They taste nasty,” said Marek, and yes, he tasted one—licked it, to be precise, and found it to be a “spicy, burning taste.”