'Alien-faced': New species of millipede discovered in jungles of Tanzania

A new genus and five new species of millipedes were discovered by a group of scientists in the remote jungles of Tanzania in southeast Africa.

A study, titled "A mountain of millipedes XI. The trachystreptoform spirostreptids of the Udzungwa Mountains, Tanzania (Diplopoda, Spirostreptida, Spirostreptidae)" was published on January 22 in the European Journal of Taxonomy.

It revealed that researchers explored the mountains of Tanzania as part of the Forest Restoration and Climate Experiment.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Researchers at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia noted that the millipedes were discovered while researchers were studying tree and vine growth in the Udzungwa Mountains in Tanzania.

As quoted by the New York Post, USC Professor Andy Marshall said his team discovered the millipedes. It looked like a creature from alien movies and the heads resembled Star Wars figures. According to a February 1 news release from the university, Marshall described the new species as "alien-faced".

Marshall said that the newly discovered millipedes are a few centimetres long and have about 200 legs each. The millipede specimens were transferred to the Natural History Museum at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.

Marshall said as quoted: "We record millipedes of all sizes during our fieldwork to measure forest recovery because they are great indicators of forest health, but we didn't realise the significance of these species until the myriapodologists had assessed our specimens."

The report further mentioned that the largest African millipedes can reach 35 centimetres in length. The Missouri Department of Conservation stated that the largest millipede species in North America is nearly half the length, which measures around 15 centimetres.

(With inputs from agencies)