Centipedes are regularly on the list of the creepiest and grossest insects on the planet, which is odd since they aren’t even insects.

These multi-legged creepy crawlies are actually classified as Chilopoda. Chilopoda are identified for having lots of legs, venomous bites, and being predators.

Of all creatures still around today, the centipede is one of the oldest that is venomous, first showing up on earth around 400 million years ago.

There are many different types of centipeds out there, and interestingly, they don’t all share the same type of venom. In fact, according to a study in 2019, it looks like centipedes evolved venom five distinct and separate times over their long history.

Having different types of venoms is one of the things that distinguishes each of the five orders of centipede.

The earliest known example of venom in a centipede was made up of just four toxins. Over time, it would evolve to become much more complex and today, some centipedes (in Australia mostly, of course) boast venom that contains 47 of the 48 known toxin families.

Venom offers some very obvious evolutionary benefits, which is why it is found in many types of animals. It can work as either a defensive mechanism or a way to capture prey (or both).

The venom in centipedes is delivered through pincer-like appendages, which are located near their heads. These pincers are actually modified legs and no the fangs that most people think of them as.

The study looks at how the venom evolved each time for this amazing species.

One of the most interesting seems to be that the centipede took certain aspects of their venom from bacteria and fungi in their environment. The researchers identified at least 8 horizontal gene transfers where the centipede acquired the genes from the various microbes to increase the potency of their venom.

One might wonder whether in another 400 million years if these centipedes will still be around (most likely, yes) and if so, how many more ways they will evolve to become even more venomous.

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