Centipedes (from Neo-Latin centi-, "hundred", and Latin pes, pedis, "foot") are predatory arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda (Ancient Greek χεῖλος, kheilos, "lip", and Neo-Latin suffix -poda, "foot", describing the forcipules) of the subphylum Myriapoda, an arthropod group which includes millipedes and other multi-legged animals.

Within these habitats, centipedes require a moist microhabitat because they lack the waxy cuticle of insects and arachnids, causing them to rapidly lose water.

These limbs, or forcipules, end in sharp claws and include venom glands that help the animal to kill or paralyze its prey.

The organs, at the base of the antennae, consist of a disc-like structure and a central pore, with an encircling of sensitive cells.

Like insects, centipedes breathe through a tracheal system, typically with a single opening, or spiracle, on each body segment.

[6][7] They are sometimes used in defensive postures, and some species use them to capture prey, defend themselves against predators, or suspend themselves from objects such as branches, using the legs as pincers.

[9] Both groups of myriapods have long, multi-segmented bodies, many legs, a single pair of antennae, and the presence of postantennal organs.

[11] Females provide parental care, both by curling their bodies around eggs and young, and by grooming them, probably to remove fungi and bacteria.

In the primitive condition, seen in the orders Lithobiomorpha, Scutigeromorpha, and Craterostigmomorpha, development is anamorphic: more segments and pairs of legs are grown between moults.

After the full complement of legs is achieved, the now postlarval stadia (about five more stages) develop gonopods, sensory pores, more antennal segments, and more ocelli.

In the Geophilomorpha, the number of thoracic segments usually varies within species, often on a geographical basis, and in most cases, females bear more legs than males.

The repeated creation of these prepattern units is driven by an oscillator clock, implemented with the Notch signalling pathway.

[24] Common prey items include lumbricid earthworms, dipteran fly larvae, collembolans, and other centipedes.

[25] They are carnivorous; study of gut contents suggests that plant material is an unimportant part of their diets, although they eat vegetable matter when starved during laboratory experiments.

[24] Species of Scolopendromorph, noticeably members from the genera Scolopendra and Ethmostigmus, are able to hunt for substantial prey items, including large invertebrates and sizable vertebrates, which could be larger than the myriapod itself.

[26][27] For instance, Scolopendra gigantea (the Amazonian giant centipede) preys on tarantulas, scorpions, lizards, frogs, birds, mice, snakes, and even bats, catching them in midflight.

[29][30] Many larger animals prey upon centipedes, such as mongooses, mice, salamanders, beetles and some specialist snake species.

[36] The giant desert centipede of Arizona, Scolopendra polymorpha, has a black head and tail, and an orange body; this conspicuous pattern may be aposematic, an honest signal of the animal's toxicity.

[39] Centipedes live in many different habitats including in soil and leaf litter; they are found in environments as varied as tropical rain forests,[25] deserts,[40] and caves.

[44][45][46] The fossil record of centipedes extends back to 430 million years ago, during the Late Silurian (Crussolum),[47][48] though they are rare throughout the Paleozoic.

[52] Three species, one scutigeromorph (Latzelia) and two scolopendromorphs (Mazoscolopendra and the poorly known Palenarthrus), have been described from the Mazon Creek fossil beds, which are Carboniferous, 309–307 mya.

The Epimorpha still exist as a monophyletic group within the Pleurostigmophora, but the Anamorpha are paraphyletic, as shown in the cladogram:[57] Scutigeromorpha Lithobiomorpha Craterostigmomorpha Scolopendromorpha Geophilomorpha All centipedes are venomous.

While a bite to an adult human is usually very painful and may cause severe swelling, chills, fever, and weakness, it is unlikely to be fatal.