''Ommatoiulus sabulosus'', also known as the striped millipede, is a European millipede of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Julidae Julidae is a family of millipedes in the order Julida, containing more than 600 species in around 20 genera. Its members are largely confined to the Western Palaearctic, with only a few species extending into the Oriental and Afrotropical realms ...

. Its common name comes from its two striking bright longitudinal bands on the dorsal surface. ''O. sabulosus'' is widespread and common in

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...

and on the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

. It has a broad habitat range, including open areas such as meadows, fields, and roadside edges as well as sandy soils and the

leaf-litter Plant litter (also leaf litter, tree litter, soil litter, litterfall or duff) is dead plant material (such as leaves, bark, needles, twigs, and cladodes) that have fallen to the ground. This detritus or dead organic material and its constituent ...

of forests of

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

, and

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

trees.Kania, Grzegorz, & Tracz, Henryk (2005)
Mass occurrence and migration of ''Ommatoiulus sabulosus ''(Linnaeus, 1758)(Diplopoda: Julida: Julidae) in Poland
. Peckiana, 4, 57-66. ''O. sabulosus'' occurs at elevations ranging from sea level up to 2800 metres. ''O. sabulosus'' occasionally occurs in large numbers and mass migrations, they are very useful animals because they are excellent scavengers, they eat foliage, rotten wood and other dead plant material, producing humus that is exploited by plants for growth . Geographic subspecies or 'forms' include '' Ommatoiulus sabulosus aimatopodus''.

References

External links

Striped Millipede - ''Ommatoiulus sabulosus''
Julida Millipedes of Europe Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Animals described in 1758 {{myriapoda-stub