The following is a list of selected

animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Biology, biological Kingdom (biology), kingdom Animalia (). With few exceptions, animals heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, ...

s in order of increasing number of legs, from 0 legs to 653 pairs of legs, the maximum recorded in the animal kingdom. Each entry provides the relevant

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...

up to the rank of

phylum In biology, a phylum (; : phyla) is a level of classification, or taxonomic rank, that is below Kingdom (biology), kingdom and above Class (biology), class. Traditionally, in botany the term division (taxonomy), division has been used instead ...

. Each entry also provides the

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often con ...

of the animal. If the relevant

taxon In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...

includes different animals with different common names, then the entry provides the common name of a familiar example. If juveniles have fewer legs than adults, then the animal is listed by the number of legs recorded in mature adults. If this number varies among adults within the taxon, then this variation is noted in a comment. In counting legs, this list follows the conventions adopted in the relevant literature. For example,

millipede Millipedes (originating from the Latin , "thousand", and , "foot") 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 derive ...

s with

gonopod Gonopods are specialized appendages of various arthropods used in reproduction or egg-laying. In males, they facilitate the transfer of sperm from male to female during mating, and thus are a type of intromittent organ. In crustaceans and millipe ...

s are listed by numbers that exclude leg pairs that become gonopods. Animals have been selected so that each number from 0 to 55 leg pairs has one example listed. Each of these examples is listed by a number closely associated with the relevant taxon, either because that number is the one most commonly observed in that taxon or because it is one of only a few numbers recorded for the taxon. Beyond 55 leg pairs, intraspecific variation in leg number increases, and the association between

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

and any particular number breaks down. Beyond 55 leg pairs, examples are listed only if they represent especially significant maximum numbers (e.g., most legs in the animal kingdom) or exhibit relatively little intraspecific variation in leg number. This list draws examples from three broad groups of animals:

tetrapod A tetrapod (; from Ancient Greek :wiktionary:τετρα-#Ancient Greek, τετρα- ''(tetra-)'' 'four' and :wiktionary:πούς#Ancient Greek, πούς ''(poús)'' 'foot') is any four-Limb (anatomy), limbed vertebrate animal of the clade Tetr ...

s (with 0 to 2 leg pairs, providing three examples), velvet worms (with 13 to 43 leg pairs, providing ten examples), and

arthropod Arthropods ( ) are invertebrates in the phylum Arthropoda. They possess an arthropod exoskeleton, exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often Mineralization (biology), mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated (Metam ...

s (with 3 to 653 leg pairs, providing all the other examples). Four classes of arthropods each provide multiple examples, including

sea spider Sea spiders are marine arthropods of the class (biology), class Pycnogonida, hence they are also called pycnogonids (; named after ''Pycnogonum'', the type genus; with the suffix '). The class includes the only now-living order (biology), order P ...

s (adults with 4 to 6 leg pairs, providing two examples) and pauropods (adults with 8 to 11 leg pairs, providing four examples), but most of the examples listed are either millipedes (adults with 11 to 653 leg pairs) or

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

s (adults with 15 to 191 leg pairs). Most of the millipede examples come from two

orders Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * H ...

Polydesmida Polydesmida (from the Greek ''poly'' "many" and ''desmos'' "bond") is the largest order of millipedes, with more than 5,000 species, including all the millipedes reported to produce hydrogen cyanide (HCN). This order is also the most diverse of ...

( flat-backed millipedes, providing four examples) and

Chordeumatida Chordeumatida (from the Greek word for "sausage") is a large order of millipedes containing more than 1,400 species. Also known as sausage millipedes, they are found nearly worldwide. Chordeumatida is the largest order in the superorder Nemato ...

( sausage millipedes, providing eight examples), each with some variation in leg number among species but little variation within species. Nearly all of the centipede examples come from only one order,

Geophilomorpha Geophilomorpha is an order of centipedes commonly known as soil centipedes. The name "Geophilomorpha" is from Ancient Greek roots meaning "formed to love the earth." This group is the most diverse centipede order, with 230 genera. These centiped ...

( soil centipedes), which exhibits wide variation in leg number among species (from 27 to 191 leg pairs). Nearly all of the examples from the order Geophilomorpha come from three

families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

of soil centipedes (

Mecistocephalidae Mecistocephalidae is a monophyletic family of centipedes in the order Geophilomorpha. It is the only family in the suborder Placodesmata. Most species in this family live in tropical or subtropical regions, but some occur in temperate regions. T ...

Schendylidae Schendylidae is a family of Geophilomorpha, soil centipedes in the superfamily Himantarioidea and the order Geophilomorpha. These centipedes are found in the Americas, the Palearctic realm, Palearctic region, Africa, Madagascar, Australia, and ...

, and

Geophilidae Geophilidae is a family of soil centipedes in the superfamily Geophiloidea and the order Geophilomorpha. In 2014, a phylogenetic analysis based on morphological and molecular data found this family to be polyphyletic. To avoid this polyphyly, ...

) that exhibit relatively little intraspecific variation in leg number.

List of animals by number of legs

References

{{reflist Lists of animals Zoology-related lists Biology-related lists Nature-related lists