CATDOLL : CATDOLL: How do centipedes reproduce?

How do centipedes reproduce?

The centipede's reproduction method: mating, laying eggs, and hatching.

Centipede (Chilopoda) is a terrestrial arthropod, the body is composed of many segments, each segment has legs, so it is a multi-legged creature. It is also called Wugong, also known as centipede, centipede, a maggot, Tianlong. It is a terrestrial arthropod with poison glands and predatory. Distributed in southwest China, it comes out in spring and hibernates in winter. It usually has a long body and many pairs of legs. "Ben Cao Yan Yi" says: "The back of the centipede is dark green, the feet are red, and the belly is yellow. Common centipedes are red-headed, green-headed, and black-headed. The back of the red head is reddish black, the abdomen is light red, and the feet are light orange or yellow. The back and feet of the green head are blue, the abdomen is light blue, the body is small, and the length is about half of the red head centipede. The back and feet of the black head centipede are black, the abdomen is light yellow, and the body is smaller.

Centipedes are ovoviviparous and reproduce quickly. They mate in June, July and August. Under normal circumstances, it takes four months from mating to egg laying. When laying eggs, the female centipede digs a small pit in the soil. The female body is curved in an S shape, and the tail section at the back is placed on the back of the middle part of the body due to the curvature of the body.

After about 20 days, the centipede eggs will shed their egg membranes and fetal skins. The hatched centipede larvae are milky white. The female centipede still holds the larvae tightly between her feet. The larvae rarely move. After 25 to 30 days, the larvae will shed their skins for the second time. Their body shape is similar to that of the adults, and their body color is still milky white.

The middle part of the body is slightly fat. After 35 to 42 days, it will undergo the second molting. The body color is gray-yellow and the activity is enhanced. It is no longer tightly clumped, but loosely concentrated on the mother's belly. At this time, the young can be separated from the mother, and the mother can be placed in a large group to mate, and the centipedes after birth are fully fed.

Additional information:

Strengthen feeding before birth: Centipedes do not eat or drink water during the incubation period, and rely on consuming their own nutrients to maintain activities. Before laying eggs, the mother has the habit of eating a lot to accumulate nutrients. At this time, the feeding amount should be increased, and attention should be paid to adjusting the food variety to encourage the mother to eat more and increase nutrition before hatching.

Care during the incubation period: Centipedes react to being startled, strong light, etc. during the incubation period. Therefore, if you observe them during the incubation period, you should be careful and gentle, do not move them casually or expose them to strong light. They do not need to be fed during the incubation period, and a certain amount of water should be given in the incubator at any time.

After hatching, although the young centipedes temporarily live in groups, they can also move and forage alone. At this time, the mother will gradually leave the hatching nest and move alone. Because centipedes have a habit of competing for food, the strong bully the weak and the big bully the small, so large and small centipedes should be raised in separate nests in time.

The centipede's egg-laying breeding period is generally from late June to early August each year.

The peak period of egg-laying is in early and mid-July. At this time, the female body is thick and plump, with bright body color and dazzling light. Centipedes usually lay eggs at dawn. The eggs are light yellow, slightly oval, and the egg diameter is about 3mm. After about 20 days, the eggs begin to hatch. The larvae are milky white, like maggots, with pointed ends and a thick and round middle. After three molts, their body shape is the same as that of the adult, and the body color is grayish yellow. At this time, they can be separated from the mother.

Centipedes often swallow the eggs when they are incubating them under artificial breeding conditions, so the temperature and humidity of the environment should be kept stable and the mother should not be disturbed. Creating an artificial egg-laying and hatching nest is an effective way to increase the egg-laying rate. Remove the bottom of a discarded tin can, insert it into the soil about 8 cm thick, and put it in a 48 cm × 33 cm × 35 cm glass container.

How to artificially breed wild centipedes

Wild breeding method: This method is simple and easy. In winter, dig a small ditch of unlimited length and width in places where centipedes are found, and put garbage, broken bricks, animal residues, bones, intestines, fish bones, chicken, duck and goose feathers, etc. in it. When centipedes smell the fishy smell of chicken feathers, they will gather to live and reproduce, and they can be caught in spring. Generally, the ditch can be opened every 1 to 2 days to catch centipedes. After catching, fresh food is added and covered with fine soil to continue catching. The most suitable season for catching centipedes is around Qingming Festival. In addition, iron rakes can be used to catch centipedes in the stone piles, tree roots, weeds and beaches. This method is particularly suitable for first-time centipede breeding, which can solve the problem of seed source, and is particularly suitable for those who do not have professional breeding conditions.

Indoor fully artificial breeding method: Cement tanks can be used for indoor breeding, and the bottom area of ​​the tank is preferably 50×40 cm. Stack the cement tanks in a "品" shape for 2 to 3 layers, and use glass plates as tank covers. The tanks should be covered with soft fine soil. The thickness varies depending on the season. Generally, it is 10 cm in spring and autumn, 5 cm in summer, and about 20 cm in winter. Broken tiles, small stones, small wood blocks, etc. can be placed on the upper layer; the four corners of the tank can be made into a small triangular trough with glass, or a water container can be used instead to supply the drinking water needed by the centipedes. The stocking density is related to the size of the individual, different growth periods, and bait conditions. Generally, each tank can raise 200 1-2 year old juvenile centipedes, or 75 3-year old centipedes, or about 40-50 centipedes over 4 years old, and each tank can have about 4 male adults. For other aspects, refer to the semi-natural state outdoors.

It is carried out by artificial pond culture method.

Outdoor natural state pool culture method:

(1) The centipede pond should be built in a relatively cool, humid, wind-proof, secluded hillside. The pond should be built with bricks, stones, cement and other materials to form a 80-100 cm high pond wall. The pond wall should be filled with cement. The length and width of the pond should be determined according to the number of centipedes to be raised. The large pond should be divided into "田"-shaped small ponds to facilitate separate breeding. Drainage ditches should be set up around the pond. No cement should be poured on the bottom of the pond. First, a 6 cm thick layer of fine soil should be laid on the bottom, and then fine stones or broken tiles should be laid on top, leaving gaps. Weeds and trees should also be planted in the pond, and a water tray should be placed in the pond to supply clean drinking water, so as to create a natural ecological environment suitable for centipedes to live in. A 15 cm wide "inner eaves" should be set around the pond mouth with glass sheets, which should be at right angles to the pond wall to prevent centipedes from escaping or other harmful animals from invading.

(2) The first batch of centipedes can be collected from the wild or purchased as seedlings. Generally, the seedlings should be 3-5 years old and sexually mature centipedes, which should be strong and active, with shiny black backs. The male-female ratio should be 10:1. However, when the female centipedes lay eggs and hatch, all the male centipedes should be selected and raised separately. The density of centipedes raised in the pond should be 350-450 per square meter.

The humidity in the pond is more suitable at 60-70%, and should not exceed 75-90%. If the humidity is too high, centipedes are susceptible to infection and damage by bacteria, which will lead to difficulties in molting and eating, which will not only hinder normal development, but also cause physiological lesions, and even no reproduction or less reproduction. The temperature in the pond should be kept between 26 and 29 degrees Celsius. When the temperature rises to 40-42 degrees Celsius in summer, the water in the centipede evaporates quickly, and attention should be paid to cooling down at any time. The general method is to frequently sprinkle water into the pond to cool down and keep it moist. In winter, straw should be thrown into the pond to keep warm, creating a humid, warm and well-fed environment suitable for the growth of centipedes.

(3) Centipedes are carnivorous animals and like to eat various insects, such as locusts, crickets, cicadas, grasshoppers, dragonflies, spiders, moths, etc. The feed should be mainly poultry and animal meat, such as loach, eel, earthworm, snail, bat, rodent, gecko, lizard, snake, maggot, termite, earthworm, etc., as well as the leftovers of other animal foods, such as chicken blood, miscellaneous bones, intestines, poultry feathers, fish and shrimp offal, etc.

Centipedes sometimes eat fruits, carrots, watermelon peels and tender grass, so they can be appropriately matched with 25-35% of green feed such as lotus seeds and green leaves. In the evening of summer and autumn, you can also light a lamp to lure insects and moths for centipedes to prey on, and you can appropriately put some insects in the weeds in the pond to breed for centipedes to eat. However, centipedes are also resistant to hunger and will not die of starvation even if they are not fed for more than ten days. However, it should be noted that centipedes will kill each other and bite feed when they are extremely hungry or seriously disturbed. In addition, centipedes can go without food for several days, but they cannot go without water for a day. A water tray should be set up in the breeding pond to provide sufficient drinking water. In particular, centipedes are more particular about food, and they will not eat even insects if they are rotten. The amount of food should be increased or decreased according to the season. In spring and summer, centipedes are active, so more should be put in, and in late autumn and early winter, it can be appropriately reduced. Generally, an adult centipede eats about 1 gram each time, and a juvenile centipede can be fed once every 2 to 3 days, while an adult centipede needs to be fed once a day. The best time to put out bait is in the evening. First, remove the leftovers from the previous day and cut the larger food into pieces and place them separately.

Wild centipedes have been hunting small animals for generations, which has formed a ferocious and aggressive nature. They are very wild. Centipedes caught from the wild are particularly impatient and desperate to escape after being placed in the breeding pond. Several centipedes may even fight each other when they meet, resulting in high mortality, low egg-laying rate and hatching rate. Therefore, we do not advocate breeding wild centipedes. Artificially bred centipedes not only have the characteristics of fast growth, high reproduction rate, large and strong physique, and gentle temperament, but also have a wide range of diets and can eat a variety of plant foods. Therefore, we should vigorously develop the breeding of artificially cultivated centipedes.

Centipede recipe