Zoosphaerium neptunus

Zoosphaerium neptunus

Zoosphaerium neptunus is the largest pill millipede in the world, widely distributed in the east of Madagascar.
Green Pill millipede (Zoosphaerium sp.), Marojejy, Madagascar Close-up of a pill millipede rolled up into a ball, which they do when threatened. Source of the threat are ants, which you can see on the inner edge of the millipede. I've based identification on color/appearance, size, and location. The match is likely, but not certain. Literature speaks of Zoosphaerium neptunus as almost always occuring in swarms. I did not notice a swarm, just this one, but I didn't exactly look for more either, and Marojejy is almost impossible to navigate off-path. If identification is correct, this is the largest pill millipede species in the world. I can confirm that it was quite large, likely making it a female. Males are only half this size. Africa,Geotagged,Madagascar,Madagascar North,Marojejy,Spring,World,Zoosphaerium neptunus

Distribution

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/49595544_fig2_FIGURE-2-Distribution-map-of-Zoosphaerium-neptunus-Butler-1872-Points-are-mapped

References:

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Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionArthropoda
ClassDiplopoda
OrderSphaerotheriida
FamilyArthrosphaeridae
GenusZoosphaerium
SpeciesZoosphaerium neptunus
Photographed in
Madagascar