''Latzelia'' is an extinct genus of scutigeromorph centipedes, and the type and only genus of the family Latzeliidae. It existed during the

Carboniferous The Carboniferous ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, million years ago. The name ''Carbonifero ...

in what is now

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

(found in

Mazon Creek fossil beds The Mazon Creek fossil beds are a conservation ' found near Morris, in Grundy County, Illinois. The fossils are preserved in ironstone concretions, formed approximately in the mid- Pennsylvanian epoch of the Carboniferous period. These concretio ...

). It was described by

Samuel Hubbard Scudder Samuel Hubbard Scudder (April 13, 1837 – May 17, 1911) was an American entomologist and paleontologist. He was a leading figure in entomology during his lifetime and the founder of insect paleontology in America. In addition to fossil insects, ...

in 1890, and the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

, and only known species, is ''Latzelia primordialis''.''Invertebrate Palaeontology & Evolution'' by Euan Clarkson and Euan, N.K. Clarkson. The genus name honors Austrian zoologist

Robert Latzel Robert Latzel (28 October 1845 – 15 December 1919) was an Austrian myriapodologist and entomologist who published a series of pioneering works on millipedes, centipedes, and allies. His collection of myriapod specimens, today housed in the N ...

. This centipede genus should not be confused with two invalid names applied to

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 ...

genera: the first proposed Bollman in 1893 for a

glomerida Glomerida is an order of pill-millipedes found primarily in the Northern Hemisphere. They superficially resemble pill-bugs or woodlice, and can enroll into a protective ball. They have twelve body segments, 17 to 19 pairs of legs, and males hav ...

n species now in the genus '' Glomeridella'', and the second by Verhoeff in 1895 for a genus of

chordeumatida Chordeumatida (from the Greek word for "sausage") is a large order of millipedes containing some 1200 species with a nearly worldwide distribution. Also known as "sausage millipedes," they possess around 30 body segments behind the head (includi ...

ns now known as '' Verhoeffia''.

References

Centipede genera Monotypic arthropod genera Scutigeromorpha Carboniferous myriapods Carboniferous arthropods of North America Taxa named by Samuel Hubbard Scudder Fossil taxa described in 1890 Prehistoric myriapod genera {{paleo-myriapod-stub