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| Symphylans | ||||||||
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Scutigerellidae
Scolopendrellidae | ||||||||
Symphylans, also known as garden centipedes or glasshouse symphylans, are soil-dwelling arthropods of subphylum Myriapoda. They move rapidly through soil spaces from the surface to a depth of about 50 cm. Symphylans resemble centipedes, but are smaller and translucent. They consume decayed vegetation, but can do considerable harm to agriculture by consuming seeds, roots, and root hairs in cultivated soil. Juveniles have six pairs of legs, but, over a lifetime of several years, add an additional pair at each molt so that the adult instar has twelve pairs of legs. Without eyes, long antennae serve as sense organs. About 160 species exist worldwide.