An international team of researchers from China, Russia and Germany recently discovered six new cave-dwelling Chinese dragon millipedes. Among some of the newly identified creepy crawlies are some with unusually long legs and antennae, and others that appear ghostly white or semi-transparent.
Characterized by an armor of unusual spine-like projections, dragon millipedes are native to southeastern Asia. Many species of dragon millipedes are also equipped with a toxin known as hydrogen cyanide, which is used to ward off predators.
Surprisingly, many millipede species have yet to be discovered in both China and native tropical countries, which makes the discovery of six new "particularly extraordinary" individuals a remarkable find in and of itself.
Researchers from South China Agricultural University, the Russian Academy of Sciences and Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig stumbled upon the new species in two southern Chinese regions of Guangdong and Guangxi Zhuang.
It is believed that both areas are home to a large number of spectacular caves, which, in turn, house a plethora of unique species. However, it was not until recently that researchers began surveying these biodiversity hot spots. Four of the six new dragon millipedes are believed to live exclusively in these caves.
Previously, famed dragon millipedes gained attention from the public with the 2007 discovery of the "Shocking pink dragon millipede" in Thailand. Researchers note that while the newly described cave dragon millipedes from China lack the "shocking" warning color of their surface-living relatives, they are no less spectacular.
One of the new millipedes was aptly named the "stick insect dragon millipede" due to its extremely long legs and antennae that resemble that of a stick insect - but with many more legs.
Also, much like exclusive cave-dwelling animals, two of the new millipedes have lost their color entirely, making them ghostly white or even semi-transparent.
The latest study involved the work of Ph.D. researcher Liu Weixin of the South China Agricultural University. While perusing her Ph.D., Weixin explored more than 200 Chinese caves and was introduced to new millipede species.
What's remarkable about dragon millipedes is that they exhibit extreme cave adaptations, including loss of pigmentation and extremely elongated legs and antennae. Weixin is currently scouring through a collection of more than two dozen millipede species in hopes of bringing to light an otherwise unknown world.
Their study was recently published in the journal ZooKeys.
