[Pest Profile] Centipedes

Class/Order: Chilopoda/Various

Scientific Name: Various

Description

Adult centipedes are yellowish to dark brown, often with dark markings and 1/8 to 6 inches long. The body is flattened with 15 to 177 body segments that typically have one pair of legs each. They have one pair of slender antennae. The largest centipedes are found in the Southwest.

Biology

Centipedes typically overwinter outdoors, and, in the summer, lay 35 eggs or more in or on the soil. Newly hatched centipedes have four pairs of legs; during subsequent molts, the centipede progressively increases the number of legs until becoming an adult.

Habits

Centipedes, including the house centipede, prefer to live in moist environments. The house centipede can live indoors in damp basements, moist closets, and bathrooms and outdoors under stones, decaying firewood, objects on the ground, piles of leaves, mulch, etc. Most centipedes are active at night. The first pair of legs on centipedes has poison glands that are used to kill prey, such as insects and spiders. Centipedes can bite humans, but the bite is seldom worse than a bee sting.

Control

Centipedes, which are a nuisance outdoors, can be controlled by removing harborage areas such as piles of trash, stones, boards, leaves, grass and compost. Entry into buildings should be prevented by sealing and caulking gaps around siding, windows, doors, pipes, wires, etc. Microencapsulated and wettable powder products are the most effective formulations in the moist habitats preferred by centipedes. These products should be applied as a 3- to 10-foot band around the perimeter of the structure, into harborage sites and/or around potential entry points. House centipedes can be controlled indoors by eliminating their harborage areas where possible. A vacuum should be used to remove exposed centipedes. Liquid and dust applications can be introduced into wall voids, cracks and crevices along baseboards, and into other potential hiding places.