Giant African millipede crawls across log like a 'mini Mexican wave'
- 4 years ago
Close-up footage shows a giant African millipede crawl across a log with its hundreds of legs.
Wildlife photographer and filmer of this video Ian Redmond told Newsflare: "There is something quite mesmerising about the movement of millipede legs - like a mini Mexican wave in a stadium, it is known as a metachronal rhythm, and has a strange flowing beauty.
"Millipedes are detritivores, feeding on decaying plant matter; they play an important role in the ecological processes that keep forests healthy, their droppings providing nutrients for growing trees.
"When attacked they coil up and wait - and if further provoked, they exude a noxious fluid that effectively deters many predators.
"Even ants leave them alone - as indicated by the ant in the video rushing in the opposite direction."
This footage was filmed in Virunga National Park, Congo in 2010
Wildlife photographer and filmer of this video Ian Redmond told Newsflare: "There is something quite mesmerising about the movement of millipede legs - like a mini Mexican wave in a stadium, it is known as a metachronal rhythm, and has a strange flowing beauty.
"Millipedes are detritivores, feeding on decaying plant matter; they play an important role in the ecological processes that keep forests healthy, their droppings providing nutrients for growing trees.
"When attacked they coil up and wait - and if further provoked, they exude a noxious fluid that effectively deters many predators.
"Even ants leave them alone - as indicated by the ant in the video rushing in the opposite direction."
This footage was filmed in Virunga National Park, Congo in 2010