Wild Things: Piranhas, Nazca Boobies, Glowing Millipedes
Elephant Seals, Neanderthal evolution and more news from the world of science
- By T.A. Frail, Joseph Stromberg, Abigail Tucker, Erin Wayman and Sarah Zielinski
- Smithsonian magazine, December 2011
Nocturnal millipedes in the genus Motyxia. (Paul Marek / University of Arizona (Current Biology, Sep, 27, 2011))
Nocturnal millipedes in the genus Motyxia glow in the dark. But why? Being blind, they’re not lighting up to impress one another. Scientists collected 164 millipedes from Giant Sequoia National Monument in California and painted half of them to conceal their light. They also created 300 clay millipedes, half painted with a luminescent pigment. They left the millipedes out overnight and found “carnage” the next day, says University of Arizona entomologist Paul Marek. Dark millipedes, whether real or fake, were attacked by rodents more than twice as often as their glowing counterparts. The greenish blue light appears to serve as a defense mechanism, warning predators away, like a skull and crossbones: These millipedes produce a cyanide toxin that predators do well to avoid.
Additional Sources
“The effects of distal limb segment shortening on locomotor efficiency in sloped terrain: Implications for Neandertal locomotor behavior,” Ryan W. Higgins and Christopher B. Ruff, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, November 2011
“Sex at sea: alternative mating system in an extremely polygynous mammal,” P.J.N. de Bruyn et al., Animal Behaviour, September 1, 2011
“Maltreated nestlings exhibit correlated maltreatment as adults: Evidence of a "cycle of violence" in Nazca boobies (Sula granti),” Martina S. Muller et al., The Auk
“Sound production in red-bellied piranhas (Pygocentrus nattereri, Kner): an acoustical, behavioural and morphofunctional study,” Sandie Millot et al., Journal of Experimental Biology, November 1, 2011
“Bioluminescent aposematism in millipedes,” Paul Marek et al., Current Biology, September 27, 2011
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