We recently heard from a reader who was doing laundry when she found a specimen. While putting some towels in the washer, she noticed a small dark worm-like organism on one of the towels. She thought it was dead, but then noticed it moving. Her brother moved the creature outside. She believes that the creature is probably a larva, not a worm. So, what did our reader find?
Unfortunately, she didn’t take a picture of the specimen. But she did provide some useful clues. The specimen is about an inch long, dark brown or black, and has a thin line of pink down its belly. Also, when she discovered the creature it was curled up in a circle. Without a photo, we can’t be certain about the identity of the specimen. However, we think that our reader might have found a millipede!
Millipedes are about 1 or 2 inches long and they are black or brown, which makes them match the description our reader provided. Also, millipedes are known to curl up when they feel threatened. Finally, millipedes are nocturnal, so it is possible that when she discovered the millipede and thought it was dead, it was in fact sleeping! While we think this is a definite possible identification, we aren’t 100% sure. Millipedes have legs, and our reader didn’t mention anything about the specimen having legs. Also, millipedes are not larva, and our reader thought what she found was a larva.
If our reader agrees that what she found was a millipede then she did the right thing by bringing it back outside. Millipedes thrive in the outdoors, and it probably ended up inside by accident. As long as she doesn’t continue to find specimens, then she shouldn’t worry about finding the creature! If our reader doesn’t think the creature is a millipede, we encourage her to send in a more detailed description, or to take a photograph if she comes across the specimen again!
To summarize, one of our readers found a black specimen curled up in a towel. We think she might have found a millipede!
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