100 Species #27: Flat-backed millipede

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A flat-backed millipede (Pseudopolydesmus sp.) surprised by having its sheltering rock suddenly turned over, in one of our perennial beds.

I thought through this post, then looked at my entry for 365 species #87 and found that I had nothing further to add. The basics are this: millipedes are related to insects, probably predating them, and feed on plants and detritus. They move slowly and use their many legs to push through soil (as opposed to centipedes which use their many legs to move swiftly and scuttle under things). I still don't know why I never encountered flat-backed millipedes as a child--I only ever found garden millipedes, cylindrical in cross-section. Now I find flat-backs under nearly every rock. In New England all our multi-legged beasts are very small, with only our largest house centipedes stretching 2 inches long. Lucky bug-lovers in the subtropics, tropics, and hot deserts get to find centipedes and millipedes as long as their hand or longer.