Archispirostreptus gigas (African Giant Millipede)

Origin: Africa
Length: 30 to 36 cm
Age:7 to 10 years
The African Giant Millipede is a millipede species that originally (as the name suggests) occurs in Africa. This species actually resembles a giant millipede. They are often colored black. The adult animals have 256 legs in total

Care
Experience: Novice/intermediate insect keeper
Food: vegetables, fruits and leaves
Adult food: vegetables, fruit and leaves
Feeding young: vegetables, fruit and leaves

Nutrition
The African millipede often eats leaves that lie on the ground. In addition, the African millipede likes to eat fruit and vegetable waste. Sometimes they also like to get dog/cat food.

Water
It is important to spray a part of the millipede's enclosure with water about twice a week. The African millipede gets a lot of moisture from the leaves it eats, but likes to drink drops of the leaves when it has just been sprayed. An enclosure with young millipedes can be watered more often per week (make sure it is not too wet, because young animals can drown in too large drops).

Cleaning
The easiest way is to cover the substrate of the enclosure where you have the African millipede with leaf compost or humus. If you are going to clean the accommodation, do not do this with detergent, millipedes are very sensitive to this and can become very slow or even die. If you do use cleaning products, rinse the accommodation well. Young millipedes are really masters at escaping, so make sure that when you remove the withered branches from the enclosure, millipedes cannot escape. Always check the withered branches carefully before you throw them away. You will not be the first to suddenly see a millipede at the top of your green container after a while.

Handling
African millipedes are generally very easy to handle. Always lift the millipede carefully and take care not to pinch any of its limbs. They will generally remain quite quiet when handled, but adult males may still try to crawl away. Therefore, always close windows and doors properly when handling or changing the millipede.

Housing
Minimum size of enclosure per adult African centipede: 60*60*60 cm
Day temperature: 24-28oC
Night temperature: minimum 22 to 24C
Humidity: 75-85%
Ground cover: leaves, humus or leaf soil

Design
The layout of the enclosure for the African millipede is quite simple. The African millipede must always have access to food. The bottom of the enclosure must be easy to clean, because millipede relieves a lot of stress (this easily goes moldy when it gets damp in the enclosure). When purchasing an enclosure, make sure that there are not too large cracks and/or seams because young animals can easily escape through this, because they can flatten themselves and crawl through the smallest cracks or holes. The accommodation must also have at least one ventilation grid.

Behaviour
Diet: Leaves, vegetables, fruits and water spray
Lifestyle: Tree/shrub dweller and twilight/night active

Character
Once it starts to get dark, this species starts to become more active and you can also hear them eating (they make a clipping movement with their heads to eat the leaves). Young animals can sometimes run around the enclosure all day and night, this is nothing to worry about.

Points of attention
Good ventilation in the enclosure of the African millipede is very important. Make sure that fresh leaves are available at all times for the African millipedes to eat. Adult females eat quite a lot to produce eggs and will therefore have to be provided with fresh food more quickly.

Cost and Purchase
Legislation: You do not need CITES or transfer papers to own African centipede.
One-off costs: This includes the costs for accommodation, lighting, heating and any decoration. This can cost several tens to hundreds of euros. The final amount depends on the quality and size of the products.
Fixed costs: Are there any costs besides water and electricity?
Unexpected costs: Are there hardly any