Although the name "millipede" derives from the Latin for "thousand feet", no species was known to have 1,000 or more until the discovery of Eumillipes persephone, which can have over 1,300 legs.

Millipedes occur on all continents except Antarctica, and occupy almost all terrestrial habitats, ranging as far north as the Arctic Circle in Iceland, Norway, and Central Russia.

Where earthworm populations are low in tropical forests, millipedes play an important role in facilitating microbial decomposition of the leaf litter.

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