''Eumillipes'' 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 ...

in the family

Siphonotidae Siphonotidae is a family of millipedes in the order Polyzoniida. There are about 15 genera and at least 40 described species in Siphonotidae. Genera ''Orsilochus In Greek mythology, Orsilochus (Ancient Greek: Ὀρσίλοχος), Ortil ...

. It contains a single species, ''E. persephone'', known from the

Eastern Goldfields The Eastern Goldfields is part of the Western Australian Goldfields in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, covering the present and former gold-mining area east of Perth. Extent and name origin The region encompasses the town ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. The species was first collected in 2020, discovered in three drill holes, living at depths of between and .

Etymology

Its generic name, ''Eumillipes'', means "true millipede" (or "true thousand feet"), referring to its possession of over 1,000 legs; its

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

, ''persephone'', alludes to the Greek goddess of the same name, who was the queen of the underworld, in reference to its subterranean lifestyle.

Description

First described in 2021, individuals reach up to in length, and about in diameter with 198 to 330 body segments and up to 1,306 legs, making it the species with the most legs on Earth and the first millipede discovered to have 1,000 legs or more. It has a highly elongated body with a cone shaped head and unusually large, thick antennae. It is eyeless, a trait not found in any other Australian polyzoniidan. Its elongated shape, large number of legs, and eyeless condition is convergent with the distantly related ''

Illacme plenipes ''Illacme plenipes'' is a Siphonorhinidae, siphonorhinid millipede found in the Central California, central region of the U.S. state of California. It has up to 750 legs. One of two known species in the genus ''Illacme'', it was first seen in 192 ...

'' of North America, the previous record holder with up to 750 legs. The large number of legs is believed to assist it with moving in its underground habitat, enabling it to crawl inside small crevices. It varies from most members of

Polyzoniida __NOTOC__ Polyzoniida is an order of millipedes in the Class_(biology)#Hierarchy_of_ranks_below_and_above_the_level_of_class, subterclass Colobognatha containing three families and at least 74 described species. Description Polyzoniidans have a ...

, with its elongated shape and thin body, as members of that order are usually shorter, with fewer legs and flatter dome-shaped bodies. Its inclusion in this order was based on analysis of its genome to determine a common ancestor. Its diet and lifestyle details are unknown, but it is thought that it may feed on fungi growing on the roots of trees.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q110154909, from2=Q110155010 Polyzoniida Millipedes of Oceania Arthropods of Western Australia Endemic fauna of Australia Monotypic arthropod genera Animals described in 2021 de:Eumillipes persephone fr:Eumillipes persephone no:Eumillipes persephone pl:Eumillipes persephone pt:Eumillipes persephone ru:Eumillipes persephone