Polydesmida is the largest order of millipedes, with more than 5,000 species, including all the millipedes reported to produce hydrogen cyanide (HCN). This order is also the most diverse of the millipede orders in terms of morphology. Millipedes in this order are found in all regions of the world other than Antarctica.
Chordeumatida is a large order of millipedes containing more than 1,400 species. Also known as sausage millipedes, they are found nearly worldwide. Chordeumatida is the largest order in the superorder Nematophora, a group also known as spinning millipedes because their telsons feature spinnerets used to build nests of silk. These millipedes produce this silk to create chambers in which to molt or to lay their eggs.
Craspedosomatidae is a family of millipedes in the order Chordeumatida. Most adult millipedes in this family have 30 segments, but some have only 28. There are at least 30 genera and 210 described species in Craspedosomatidae.
Anamastigona is a genus of millipedes in the family Anthroleucosomatidae. There are about 20 described species in Anamastigona, found mainly in Europe and the Middle East.
Metopidiotrichidae is a family of millipedes in the order Chordeumatida. This family includes more than 70 species. These millipedes are found in Indochina, Australia, and on Pacific islands from New Zealand to Japan.
Mastigophorophyllidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. Adult millipedes in this family have 30 segments.
Brachychaeteumatidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. Adult millipedes in this family have 30 segments.
Chordeumatidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. These millipedes range from 7 mm to 18 mm in length and are found in Europe. Adult millipedes in this family have either 28 or 30 segments. This family features distinctive sex-linked modifications to the legs in adults: In the adult female, a legless sternite replaces the third pair of legs, and in the adult male, five pairs of legs are modified in the gonopod complex. These modifications are more extensive than those found in other adult males in this order, which often have only two leg pairs modified into gonopods. With the more extensive modifications to the legs in this family, species with the usual 30 segments feature adult females with only 49 leg pairs and adult males with only 45 pairs of walking legs, and species with only 28 segments feature adult females with only 45 leg pairs and adult males with only 41 pairs of walking legs.
Chamaesomatidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. This family contains 28 species distributed among 11 genera. These millipedes are found in Europe and North Africa.
Haaseidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. This family includes 29 species. These millipedes are found in central and southeastern Europe.
Kirkayakidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. This family was formerly known as Altajellidae. Adult millipedes in this family have 28 segments rather than the 30 segments usually found in chordeumatidans.
Hoffmaneumatidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. This family includes two genera, one (Hoffmaneuma) found in the Russian Far East and the other (Japanoparvus) found in Japan. Millipedes in this family range from 4 mm to 6 mm in length. Adult millipedes in this family have only 28 segments, not the 30 segments usually found in this order. Adult males in this family feature a reduced leg pair 10 in addition to the two pairs normally modified into gonopods in this order. In the adult male of the species Hoffmaneuma exiguum, for example, the gonopod complex derives from all three leg pairs rather than from just the usual two.
Haplobainosomatidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. Adult millipedes in this family have 30 segments.
Attemsiidae is a Palaearctic family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. Adult millipedes in this family have 30 segments.
Macrochaeteumatidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. Adult millipedes in this family have only 28 segments rather than the 30 segments usually found in this order.
Entomobielziidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. This family includes 18 species, including 13 in the genus Tianella. Millipedes in this family are found in Romania, central Asia, and the Himalayas.
Trachygonidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. Adult millipedes in this family have 28 or 30 segments.
Heterolatzeliidae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida. Adult millipedes in this family have 30 segments.
Chamaesoma is a monotypic genus of millipede in the family Chamaesomatidae, and Chamaesoma broelemanni is the only species in this genus. This millipede is notable as one of only a few species in the order Chordeumatida with only 26 segments in adults, four fewer segments than typically found in adults this order. This species lives on the surface of the soil and is distributed across most of France and Luxembourg. The genus Chamaesoma and its only species were first described by the German zoologist Karl W. Verhoeff in 1913 based on type material found by the French zoologists Henri Brölemann and Henri Ribaut under wet leaf litter near St. Béat in the Pyrenees in France.
Metamastigophorophyllon is a genus of millipedes in the family Anthroleucosomatidae. This genus includes millipedes found in Azerbaijan, Iran, Russia, and Georgia. All five species in this genus have 31 segments in adults. This genus is notable for including the only species in the order Chordeumatida with 31 segments rather than the 30 segments usually observed in adults in this order.
