''Desmoxytes'', whose species are commonly known as the dragon millipedes, is a genus of

millipede Millipedes are a group of arthropods that are characterised by having two pairs of jointed legs on most body segments; they are known scientifically as the class Diplopoda, the name derived from this feature. Each double-legged segment is a resu ...

s of the family

Paradoxosomatidae Paradoxosomatidae, the only family in the suborder Paradoxosomatidea (also known as Strongylosomatidea), is a family of flat-backed millipedes in the order Polydesmida. Containing nearly 200 genera and 975 species , it is one of the largest fami ...

found in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

. The genus was described by

Ralph Vary Chamberlin Ralph Vary Chamberlin (January 3, 1879October 31, 1967) was an American biologist, ethnographer, and historian from Salt Lake City, Utah. He was a faculty member of the University of Utah for over 25 years, where he helped establish the School of ...

in 1923, and reviewed by Sergei Golovatch and Henrik Enghoff in 1994. At least 18 species are known from to

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

, and

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

. One species, ''D. planata'', has also been observed in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, the

Andaman Islands The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a maritime boundary between th ...

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, V ...

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

Great Coco Island The Coco Islands ( my, ကိုကိုးကျွန်း) are a small group of islands in the northeastern Bay of Bengal. They are part of the Yangon Region of Myanmar. The islands are located south of the city of Yangon. Coco Island gr ...

, and

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

; however, this species has expanded its range by being transported through human activity. Several species have only recently been discovered, and some have yet to be officially described. Generally, species in this genus are striking in coloration and spiny, although several species are cave-dwelling, and show

troglomorphic Troglomorphism is the morphological adaptation of an animal to living in the constant darkness of caves, characterised by features such as loss of pigment, reduced eyesight or blindness, and frequently with attenuated bodies and/or appendages. The ...

characteristics, such as pale brownish coloration and long, narrow spines. This genus is unique for its sculptured, ornamented dorsum, and elaborate paranota. The maximum length for a species in this genus is around . Species in this genus also have the ability to produce

hydrogen cyanide Hydrogen cyanide, sometimes called prussic acid, is a chemical compound with the formula HCN and structure . It is a colorless, extremely poisonous, and flammable liquid that boils slightly above room temperature, at . HCN is produced on an ...

to ward off predators, which can give the dragon millipedes an almond-like smell.

Species

Other than ''D. planata'', each species of dragon millipede is known primarily from only one or a few locations in their country of origin. Additionally, one species from Australia, ''

Desmoxytoides hasenpuschorum ''Desmoxytoides hasenpuschorum'' is a species of millipede and the only species in the monotypic genus ''Desmoxytoides''. It lives in Australia. This species is closely related to the dragon millipedes of the genus ''Desmoxytes'', and there is ...

'', is extremely similar to ''Desmoxytes'', but has been split into its own monotypic genus; speculation exists, even by the genus authority for ''Desmoxytoides'', that this split is not necessary. In 2018, the genus ''

Hylomus ''Hylomus'' is a genus of millipede of the family Paradoxosomatidae found in southeast Asia. Species References

{{Taxonbar, from= Q42330183 Paradoxosomatidae Millipede genera ...

'' was reinstated and 33 ''Desmoxytes'' species were reassigned to this genus.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3784435 Polydesmida Millipede genera Millipedes of Asia Cave millipedes Taxa named by Ralph Vary Chamberlin