On the Origin of Species: Venipede, Whirlipede and Scolipede: Difference between revisions

There's a little more to it than that, though, and our first clue comes from Whirlipede's curious design. The ability to curl up into a ball isn't something that's seen amongst centipedes: perhaps not surprising, since it's a defensive action, and centipedes are much more adapted for attack than defense. It is something that we can observe in the meeker millipedes, though. Two orders of millipedes, {{wp|Glomerida}} and {{wp|Sphaerotheriida}}, have evolved this ability, and are collectively known as {{wp|pill millipede}}s due to their resemblance to the {{wp|Woodlouse|pill bug}} (also known as the woodlouse, a favorite creature of mine and one that sorely needs turning into a Pokémon). Glomerida are found mainly in the Northern Hemisphere and are quite small, making them easily mistaken for pill bugs. Spaerotheriida can get quite a bit larger, and are found in the Southern Hemisphere.

But while Venipede and Whirlipede seem to have diverse origins, Scolipede is much closer to being a pure centipede. Its name in both English and Japanese even hints at a specific centipede genus: ''{{wp|Scolopendra}}'' (Scolipede's Japanese name is ''Pendror'' or ペンドラー). It seems likely that there was a particular species they had in mind, too.