Centipedes

I have a hard time coming across centipedes on my nature travels. They are slippery things; moving incredibly fast and, like many insects, not very fond of me, my prodding, and my camera flashing.

On a walk yesterday, I was finding a remarkable number of earthworms. This wasn't an exciting find; while I mean earthworms no specific harm, they are never high on my list of creatures to document. But, while looking under one decayed log, I found a very tiny, rolled up slimy thing that I figured was a very, very small worm. I prodded it gently with a thin leaf stem, trying to get it to coil around so I could get a closer look. But unlike most worms, it wasn't taking the bait (so to speak), and kept slithering away from me.

Frustrated, I finally scooped up a clod of dirt and held the creature in my hand.

Surprisingly, this "worm" expanded to over two inches in length and began speeding across my flesh. It was a very disturbed centipede, looking for sanctuary from my dreadful grasp.

Unlike the millipedes I keep which, for twice as many legs, move about at a methodical pace, the centipede raced all over my hand, threatening to burrow under the sleeve of my sweatshirt and cower who knows were under my clothes. I quickly determined this to be a bad thing, so I gently returned the creature to the ground, but not before snapping off a few shots.

A few moments later, I found another centipede, still fast, but stunned at being uncovered as I rolled a log for investigation. I snapped off a few shots before it found refuge in the gap of the wood.