Scolopendra (through Latin from Greek σκολόπενδρα, skoˈlo.pen.ðɾa) is a species-rich genus of large tropical centipedes of the family Scolopendridae.

[2] All Scolopendra species can deliver a painful bite, injecting venom through their forcipules, which are not fangs or other mouthparts; rather, these are modified legs on the first body segment.

Larger specimens have been observed preying on frogs, tarantulas, lizards, birds, snakes, rodents, and even bats.

[8] The venom of certain Scolopendra species were found to contain compounds such as serotonin, haemolytic phospholipase, a cardiotoxic protein, and a cytolysin.

[9] Scolopendra was one of the genera created by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae, the starting point for zoological nomenclature.