RHH's photos with the keyword: millipede

This millipede was about 15 cm long. We photographed it on the walls of Boquillas Canyong in Big Bend National Park.

This creature, Harpaphe hayadeniana, fairly common in our forests, is also known as the Night-train Millipede. Its other name, Cyanide Millipede, refers to its ability to emit hydrogen cyanide gas, the poison that smells like almonds, when threatened. It is not large enough to be dangerous to humans, though contact with the gas might burn a bit. The first time we saw it, I was trying to keep it from escaping and noticed that it smelled like almonds. It was only when we returned home, however, and I looked it up that I found that the smell was actually cyanide.