8 Types of Centipedes in Maryland

8 types of centipedes have a verified observation record in Maryland. The most frequently recorded are House Centipede, Brown Centipede and Eastern Red Centipede. Here is the full list, ranked by how often each is reported on iNaturalist.

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8 types of centipedes have a verified observation record in Maryland. The most frequently recorded are House Centipede, Brown Centipede and Eastern Red Centipede. Here is the full list, ranked by how often each is reported on iNaturalist.

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Real sighting data, source iNaturalist

3,029 verified observations on iNaturalist of centipede have been recorded in Maryland, most often in April, March, May.

When centipede are recorded in Maryland

Verified species, source iNaturalist

8 types of centipedes recorded in Maryland

8 centipede species have a verified observation record in Maryland, each with at least 10 confirmed sightings. The full list, ranked by how often each is recorded, is below.

4 of the 8 shown are recorded as introduced to Maryland rather than native.

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    1

    House Centipede

    Scutigera coleoptrata

    965 recordsIntroduced
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    2

    Brown Centipede

    Lithobius forficatus

    337 recordsIntroduced
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    3

    Eastern Red Centipede

    Scolopocryptops sexspinosus

    193 records
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    4

    Diamondback Soil Centipede

    Geophilus vittatus

    66 records
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    5

    Scolopocryptops peregrinator

    Scolopocryptops peregrinator

    48 records
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    6

    Japanese House Centipede

    Thereuonema tuberculata

    41 recordsIntroduced
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    7

    Common Cryptops

    Cryptops hortensis

    20 recordsIntroduced
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    8

    Strigamia bothriopus

    Strigamia bothriopus

    15 records

Plus 11 more recorded only rarely (fewer than 10 verified sightings). Counts from verified iNaturalist observations.

The House Centipede (Scutigera coleoptrata) is the most commonly recorded, with 965 verified observations, about 57% of all centipedes reported in Maryland. If you spot a centipede here, it is statistically most likely to be this one.

Maryland also hosts less common centipedes such as Diamondback Soil Centipede, Scolopocryptops peregrinator and Japanese House Centipede, each recorded fewer than 100 times. These are the species worth a second look when you are out, since a sighting is more notable.

Not every one of these is originally from here. House Centipede, Brown Centipede and Japanese House Centipede are recorded by iNaturalist as introduced in Maryland rather than native, so they arrived with human help rather than on their own.