MALI: The deepest underground centipede in the world has been discovered by an international team of scientists.
Found up to 3,600ft (1,100 metres) down, the species has been named Geophilus hadesi, after Hades, the god of the underworld in Greek mythology.
The centipede was found to have powerful jaws, poison glands and also long curved claws, which it uses to grasp its prey.
The creature, which measures 0.87 to 1.1 inches (2.2 to 2.8cm), was found by members of the Croatian Biospeleological Society in three caves in the Velebit mountain range in Croatia.
The ‘Hades’ centipede belongs to a group of species called geophilomorphs, which come back up to the surface occasionally.
However, this creature was found to spend its entire life underground, one of only two such creatures known to do so.
The other creature has been called Persephone, Hades’ mythological wife and queen of the underworld.
