Allendale, Northumberland: Fang-like modified legs near its front contain poison with which to inject prey such as slugs
Marigolds are still flowering in our veg garden, glowing bright orange against a dark mulch of new-laid compost. Between rows of carrots, beetroot and coriander in seed is a wooden board for walking on. I lift it carefully to see what’s underneath. Clods of compost stick to its underside along with worms, slugs and a centipede, chestnut brown, fast-moving and scuttling away to hide.
I often find centipedes when working in the garden: among crocks in the bottom of terracotta pots, in rotting leaf mould, when moving stones or dead wood. I pick this one up and it runs from one gloved hand to another in a fluid movement, repeating this over and over as I keep swapping hands. I drop it into an observation pot to count its legs: there are 15 pairs, one to each segment of its flat body. Fine antennae explore the pot and coil like some waving sea creature. Living in dark places and feeding by night, centipedes rely on antennae rather than eyesight.
Continue reading...from Property | The Guardian https://ift.tt/3k9fYF3
via IFTTT
No comments:
Post a Comment