''Allothereua maculata'' is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
centipedes found in
Australia known as the
house centipede – a name applied elsewhere to other species.
Description
The body of ''Allothereua maculata'' is made up of 15 segments and bears 15 pairs of long legs.
The body is pale brown with dark markings, and grows to long.
It bears one pair of
antennae on the head and a similarly long pair of caudal appendages at the tail end. These organisms have a lot of small hairs and spindle-like bodies so scientists Haase and Heathcote believed that these features can behave as an organ but later discovered that it is not true, they have other functions. There was only limited research done but they understand that it was probably created to help with adaption.
Distribution
''Allothereua maculata'' is the most common
scutigeromorph centipede across southern Australia,
occurring from
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 ...
to
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
.
Ecology
''Allothereua maculata'' lives in
urban area
An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities ...
s and
woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (se ...
.
Its occurrence in houses indicates that it prefers dampness and a lack of
ventilation
Ventilation may refer to:
* Ventilation (physiology), the movement of air between the environment and the lungs via inhalation and exhalation
** Mechanical ventilation, in medicine, using artificial methods to assist breathing
*** Ventilator, a m ...
.
''A. maculata'' is a
predator
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...
of
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three ...
s and other arthropods, but is generally considered harmless.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3809327
Hilken, & Rosenberg, J. (2006). Ultrastructure of the maxillary organ ofScutigera coleoptrata (Chilopoda, Notostigmophora): Description of a multifunctional head organ. Journal of Morphology., 267(2), 152–165. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmor.10392
Scutigeromorpha
Arthropods of Australia
Animals described in 1844