''Scolopendra viridicornis'' is a species of

centipede Centipedes (from New Latin , "hundred", and Latin , " foot") are predatory arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda (Ancient Greek , ''kheilos'', lip, and New Latin suffix , "foot", describing the forcipules) of the subphylum Myriapoda, an ...

in the family

Scolopendridae Scolopendridae (or, in older documents, Scolopendridæ) is a family of large centipedes (class Chilopoda). Nearly all species in this family have four ocelli ( simple eyes) on each side of the head and only 21 pairs of legs, but there are excepti ...

which can be found within the

Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...

, the type locality being in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. Due to the geographic distribution of this species it is known as the Amazonian giant centipede.

Behavior and diet

As with the vast majority of species in this genus, Scolopendra viridicornis is carnivorous. It hunts actively, seizing any prey items small enough to be overpowered. Due to the large size of this centipede, its diet not only includes arthropods but may also consist of small vertebrates such as rodents, frogs, snakes and lizards. The centipede typically seizes and restrains prey with help from a muscular body and numerous legs, then delivers a venomous bite to subdue and kill the prey animal. It has also been known to scavenge when the opportunity presents itself. Scolopendra viridicornis is quite quick to flee when disturbed by a predator, running away with impressive speed. If pursued the centipede will raise its terminal legs in an attempt to draw any attack to its hind end. When a predator touches these raised limbs the centipede will use them to grip its aggressor and spin around to deliver a venomous bite. The centipede will then continue to flee until it finds safety.

Medical use

In northeast Brazil, ''S. viridicornis'' is used in regional folk medicine as an

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It ...

. The species possesses a peptide in its body known as lacrain which exhibits strong

antimicrobial An antimicrobial is an agent that kills microorganisms or stops their growth. Antimicrobial medicines can be grouped according to the microorganisms they act primarily against. For example, antibiotics are used against bacteria, and antifungals ar ...

effects against Gram-negative bacteria; this peptide is the first described peptide with antimicrobial activity from the body extract of a myriapod. Lacrain shows promise in terms of future uses due to a distinct lack of

cytotoxic Cytotoxicity is the quality of being toxic to cells. Examples of toxic agents are an immune cell or some types of venom, e.g. from the puff adder (''Bitis arietans'') or brown recluse spider (''Loxosceles reclusa''). Cell physiology Treating cells ...

activity against human

erythrocytes Red blood cells (RBCs), also referred to as red cells, red blood corpuscles (in humans or other animals not having nucleus in red blood cells), haematids, erythroid cells or erythrocytes (from Greek ''erythros'' for "red" and ''kytos'' for "holl ...

References

viridicornis Arthropods of India Arthropods of Myanmar Animals described in 1844 {{myriapoda-stub