Henia brevis (Silvestri, 1896)

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Synonyms

  • Chaetechelyne montana oblongocribellata Verhoeff, 1898
  • Henia (Pseudochaetechelyne) brevis (Silvestri,1896)

Status:

  • GB IUCN status: Least Concern
  • GB rarity status: Nationally Scarce

ID Difficulty

3

Identification

Henia brevis is a small pallid centipede (to 19 mm) with 53-57 pairs of legs and with the last pair of legs of characteristic shape and bearing a claw (see images to right). 

It bears a passing resemblance to Schendyla dentata (which occurs in similar habitats), but has many more leg pairs and lacks the diagnostic forciples of that species. 

More information to allow accurate identification is given in the published identification keys by Tony Barber (2008 & 2009).

Steve Gregory
Steve Gregory
Paul Richards
Paul Richards
Steve Gregory
Steve Gregory
Amelie Keane

Distribution

There are scattered records of Henia brevis across southern England and Ireland, where it is usually found in urban or sub-urban sites, such as gardens and churchyards. Targeted surveys of churchyards in Oxfordshire in the 1990s found it to be widespread across the county (Gregory & Campbell, 1996, pg.30).

Habitat

It is usually found in urban or sub-urban sites, such as gardens and churchyards, typically in spring or early summer (Gregory, 2010). This is an elusive species, with single specimens typically found on the underside of, or among soil beneath, large stones partly embedded in soil. 

This account is based on the 'Centipede Atlas' (Barber, 2022).

Links

ChiloBase 2.0 - World Catalogue of Centipedes: https://chilobase.biologia.unipd.it/searches/result_species/3142

BRC code

14

idBmigTaxa

Cen_149