Scientists Find First 'True Millipede' in Australia
2021-12-27
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1Scientists drilled a small, deep hole in the Goldfields-Esperance area of Western Australia and found a true millipede.
2The word millipede means "a thousand feet,"
3but until now, no insect had ever been found with that many legs, or feet.
4The millipede in Australia had 1,306 legs.
5The scientists are calling it Eumillipes persephone.
6Paul Marek studies insects for Virginia Tech University.
7He is the lead author of a study recently published in Scientific Reports.
8Marek's co-writer is Bruno Buzatto, a biologist in Perth, Australia.
9He called the discovery a "stunning animal, a marvel of evolution."
10The name means "true thousand feet" and uses the name of Persephone, the queen of the underworld in Greek mythology.
11The scientists said one of the females had 1,306 legs.
12Another had 998. The males did not have as many legs.
13Scientists said the number of legs is not always the same because the insects molt, which means to lose their outer layer as they grow.
14They add more legs throughout their lives.
15The writers said the insects need all the legs to move through small openings in the deep soil.
16They live about 60 meters underground and are about 95 millimeters long with a width of less than 1 millimeter.
17Until now, the longest-known millipede was from California. It had 750 legs.
18Buzatto said the insect comes from a "harsh," dry area in Australia where it is hard to find any millipedes on the surface.
19The millipedes do not have eyes. Instead they use touch and smell to move through their environment.
20They come from a species of insects that eat fungi.
21The Goldfields-Esperance area in Australia is known for mining the metals gold, lithium and vanadium.
22Scientists say millipedes first appeared 400 million years ago.
23There are about 13,000 species known.
24The insects play a key role in their environments by eating plants and fungi.
25They leave behind sugar, carbon and nitrogen.
26"These nutrients can then be used by future generations of life," Marek said.
27I'm Dan Friedell.
1Scientists drilled a small, deep hole in the Goldfields-Esperance area of Western Australia and found a true millipede. 2The word millipede means "a thousand feet," but until now, no insect had ever been found with that many legs, or feet. 3The millipede in Australia had 1,306 legs. 4The scientists are calling it Eumillipes persephone. 5Paul Marek studies insects for Virginia Tech University. He is the lead author of a study recently published in Scientific Reports. 6Marek's co-writer is Bruno Buzatto, a biologist in Perth, Australia. He called the discovery a "stunning animal, a marvel of evolution." 7The name means "true thousand feet" and uses the name of Persephone, the queen of the underworld in Greek mythology. 8The scientists said one of the females had 1,306 legs. Another had 998. The males did not have as many legs. Scientists said the number of legs is not always the same because the insects molt, which means to lose their outer layer as they grow. They add more legs throughout their lives. 9The writers said the insects need all the legs to move through small openings in the deep soil. They live about 60 meters underground and are about 95 millimeters long with a width of less than 1 millimeter. 10Until now, the longest-known millipede was from California. It had 750 legs. 11Buzatto said the insect comes from a "harsh," dry area in Australia where it is hard to find any millipedes on the surface. 12The millipedes do not have eyes. Instead they use touch and smell to move through their environment. They come from a species of insects that eat fungi. 13The Goldfields-Esperance area in Australia is known for mining the metals gold, lithium and vanadium. 14Scientists say millipedes first appeared 400 million years ago. 15There are about 13,000 species known. 16The insects play a key role in their environments by eating plants and fungi. They leave behind sugar, carbon and nitrogen. 17"These nutrients can then be used by future generations of life," Marek said. 18I'm Dan Friedell. 19Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on reporting by the Reuters news agency. Susan Shand was the editor. 20How would you react to seeing a creature with so many legs? Tell us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. 21_________________________________________________ 22Words in This Story 23drill - v. to make a hole in something with a drill (a tool used for making holes in hard substances) 24author - n. a person who has written something 25stunning - adj. ideas that are believed by many people but that are not true 26mythology - n. ideas that are believed by many people but that are not true 27harsh - adj. severe or cruel : not kind, unpleasant 28marvel - n. someone or something that is extremely good, skillful, etc. : a wonderful or marvelous person or thing 29fungi - n. (plural of fungus) any one of a group of living things (such as molds, mushrooms, or yeasts) that often look like plants but have no flowers and that live on dead or decaying things 30role - n. a part that someone or something has in a particular activity or situation