By: Jack Anger Introduction Whoa! I just saw a Common Desert Centipede crawl by! That thing sure looked scary, it had stripes like a tiger! How many legs did that thing have? I'm surprised I just saw it because usually Common Desert Centipedes do not like the sun and only come out at night. Good thing it did not bite me because their bites feel like a pinch. I hate being pinched. Hopefully it finds some shade quick so it can stay out of the sun!  WHO AM I?
I am one of the most common centipedes in the Sonoran Desert. I live on average for about 5 years. You may also know me as the banded centipede or the tiger centipede. WHERE DO I LIVE? I have many different habitats including, tropical areas and seashores but I am most often found in the desert. I do not like the hot sun during the day. That means thatduring the day I take refuge underground or under rocks. I am a great burrower. During the night I crawl out and roam around looking for food. WHAT DO I EAT? I am a carnivore and inject venom into my prey. They like food such as insects, lizards, frogs, and rodents. I can take on food that is the same size as me. I also like to eat decaying material that has been dead for quite some time. 
HOW DO I LOOK?
I am 4 to 5 inches long and I am made up of many segments. Each segment has a pair of legs on it except for the first and the last. My head has antennae and I am either tan or brown. However, many of my friends that live in Arizona are dark, reddish brown. HOW DO I REPRODUCE? I hatch a few eggs and coil around them to keep them safe. I groom the eggs and protect them from mold and bacteria. This lasts for a few days and then my eggs hatch.  FUN FACT ABOUT ME?My bite is actually like a pinch. I have pincer like appendages in front of my legs. These are called gnathopods. While it may be painful my bite is not very harmful to human beings.
WHERE DID YOU FIND INFORMATION ABOUT ME? Desert Centipede Fact Sheet
This source is a fact sheet about the Common Desert Centipede. It has a lot of quick information pertaining to all aspects of the centipede's life. You will learn how they look, where they live, and how they capture food. Tiger Centipede http://www.arizonensis.org/sonoran/fieldguide/arthropoda/scolopendra_polymorpha.html This source talks about how the Common Desert Centipede looks. it explains that the Common Desert Centipede is also known as the Tiger Centipede because of its stripes and how its body is made up of segments.
Activity Kindergarten and first grade- Draw a picture of the Common Desert Centipede and tell a story about the crawler to your classmates.
Second Grade- Draw a picture of the Common Desert Centipede and write a paragraph telling a story about the crawler. Then, get together with a classmate and share your stories.
Third grade- Draw 8 large squares on a piece of paper and make a storyboard to create an original story about the Common Desert Centipede. In each square you will draw a picture pertaining to the Common Desert Centipede and under each square you will write a sentence or two describing the picture. Once you are finished, use that storyboard to write a one page story about the Common Desert Centipede.
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