The Geophilidae are a polyphyletic, cosmopolitan family of soil centipedes in the superfamily Geophiloidea containing the mostly defunct clades Aphilodontidae, Dignathodontidae, Linotaeniidae, Chilenophilinae, and Macronicophilidae.
Geophilus is a large, heterogeneous genus of soil centipedes in the family Geophilidae largely considered to be synonymous with Brachygeophilus. It is a mostly holarctic genus characterized by a claw-shaped ultimate pretarsus, anterior porefields, complete or nearly complete coxo-pleural sutures at the prosternum, and incomplete chitin-lines. Centipedes in this genus range from 1 cm to 8 cm in length. The generic name first appeared in Brewster's Edinburgh Encyclopaedia in 1814 as Geophilus electricus.
Dignathodontidae is a monophyletic clade of soil centipedes in the family Geophilidae found in the Mediterranean region, extending to Macaronesia, Caucasus, and western and central Europe. The clade is characterized by a gradually anteriorly tapered body; a short head with non-attenuated antennae; and a poorly sclerotized labrum with tubercles. The number of legs in this clade varies within as well as among species and ranges from 43 pairs to 153 pairs of legs. Species in this clade tend to have more leg-bearing segments and greater intraspecific variability in this number than generally found in the family Geophilidae.
Geophilus electricus is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found across temperate Europe, especially Britain and Ireland. Originally discovered and named Scolopendra electrica in 1758, it was later moved to its own genus, Geophilus. As the first species described in this genus, it is considered by some to be the type species. It is yellowish-orange in color and can grow up to 45 millimeters, with 55 to 75 leg pairs, a distinct carpophagus fossae on the anterior sternites, and a distinctive arrangement of the coxal pores of the last leg pair. Like many geophilomorphans, G. electricus has been known to glow in the dark, most likely as a defensive maneuver.
Geophilus carpophagus is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae, widely considered to be a type species of the genus Geophilus. It grows up to 60 millimeters in length, with an orange/tan body bearing a distinctive purplish marbled pattern. Males of this species have 51 to 55 pairs of legs; females have 53 to 57.
Geophilus easoni is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found throughout Britain and Ireland, though its range extends through western France to at least the foothills of the Pyrenees. Until 2001, it was considered synonymous with G. carpophagus, and most pre-2001 records probably refer to G. easoni. It's typically shorter than G. carpophagus, with fewer leg pairs, uniform tan/chestnut coloring, and a greater size and number of coxal pores, as well as a darkly pigmented mid-piece of the labrum which bears blunt teeth. Specimens in north-western Iberia typically have a wider range of leg pairs. It nests on the ground surface under stones and dead wood.
Acanthogeophilus spiniger is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in Northwest Africa. The original description of this species is based on a male specimen measuring 27 mm in length with 71 pairs of legs. It was first assigned to the genus Geophilus, but was moved to Acanthogeophilus in 1999 by Foddai and Minelli. Like other species in its genus, it is characterized by incomplete chitin lines, complete coxopleural sutures, stout legs, and a claw-like pretarsus.
Geophilus arenarius is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in northwest Africa, specifically near Annaba, Algeria. This species is frequently misidentified with G. electricus, and as part of the carpophagus species-complex, is closely related to both G. carpophagus and G. easoni, though it differs mainly by lacking a transverse suture on the head and peculiar integumental features (carpophagus-structures) along the trunk, as well as having relatively stouter antennae and forcipular coxosternite. G. arenarius is distinctly smaller at full growth than G. carpophagus, with usually blunter and more sclerotised tubercles lining the intermediate part of the labrum and a minute denticle at the basis of the forcipular tarsungula. It has fewer bristles lining the lateral parts of the labrum than G. easoni as well as a generally higher number of legs and a more greyish coloured trunk. The descriptions of 36 G. arenarius syntypes indicate that males of this species have 55 pairs of legs, whereas females have 55 to 59 leg pairs, with 57 as the most common number.
Geophilus proximus is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in the northern part of the Palearctic and widespread across the entire Baltic basin, though it reaches as far as the Arctic Circle and has been introduced through human agency to northern, central, and eastern parts of Kazakhstan. It was recorded once with certainty in Britain from Unst in the Shetland Islands; distribution in the rest of Europe is difficult to assess because of frequent misidentifications of the species. Populations from northern Europe are mostly parthenogenetic.
Geophilus impressus is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found all over Europe, and has also been recorded in North Africa. It lives frequently in endogean habitats; in Sardinia it's found mostly in Quercus ilex woods, but also in Mediterranean shrub, open habitats, and maquis. It lives anywhere from sea level to 1700 meters above it, sometimes in caves.
Geophilus gracilis is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found most commonly in Britain and Ireland, though specimens have also been recorded in Chile, France, Greece, and Algeria. It lives under mud and stones along the coast near or below the high tide mark, grows up to 30 millimeters in length, and is bright yellow in color with a darker reddish head. Males of this species have 51 to 57 pairs of legs; females have 51 to 61 leg pairs. This species is often confused with G. flavus and, in coastal locations, G. osquidatum.
Geophilus osquidatum is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in western Europe, from mainland Spain through western France to Britain and Ireland, though it's also been recorded in Italy, Czech Republic, and Germany. Males of this species have 51 to 57 pairs of legs; females have 53 to 63 leg pairs. This species grows up to 30 millimeters and is bright yellow with a darker reddish head. Because of this, it's often confused with G. flavus and G. gracilis. Its subspecies, G. osquidatum porosum, was found synonymous with G. flavus. In Britain, G. osquidatum is found in a wide range of habitats including woodland, grassland, and coastal shingle as well as gardens and waste ground.
Geophilus mordax, also called the pitted soil centipede, is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in North America, especially Indiana, Arkansas, Louisiana, North and South Carolina, and Florida. It grows up to 50 millimeters in length, though it averages 25–40, has 49–53 leg pairs in males and 49–57 in females, and is bright red in color. G. mordax also bears 3–5 labral teeth, a short and robust apical claw of the second maxillae, an exposed prebasal plate, and a large, consolidated sacculi.
Geophilus vittatus, also known as the diamondback soil centipede, is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae widespread in North America and named for the dark band of diamond-shaped markings across its back. G. vittatus grows up to 52 millimeters in length, though it averages 25–40, and ranges from brown- to orange-yellow in color, with 49–53 leg pairs in females, 49–51 leg pairs in males, and a lack of consolidated carpophagus structures. It can be found under any debris on the forest floor, but mostly under loose bark and occasionally near the sea.
Geophilus smithi is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in Washington, D.C. It grows up to 28 millimeters in length, has 49 leg pairs, 25-30 coxal pores, and coxae of prehensorial legs of about equal length and width.
Geophilus anonyx is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in Oregon. It was originally placed in the genus Brachygeophilus based on the lack of sternal pores, a character shared with the type species B. truncorum, however it was later moved to Geophilus.
Geophilus richardi is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in France, Italy, and the Ionian Islands. Females of this species have 33 pairs of legs; males have 29 or 31. This species is one of only two in the family Geophilidae to include centipedes with as few as 29 leg pairs. This species grows up to 10 millimeters long, has no carpophagus pit or pore-fields, and has a gradually tapering, curved pretarsus of the second maxillae. G. richardi lacks typical ventral pores between 2–4mm. The sternites instead bear a small number of pores between 0.5–1mm that differ from micropores, which are unbounded by a cuticular ring. These are possibly the remnants of typical ventral pores, their smaller size being a byproduct of overall miniaturization.
Geophilus pusillifrater is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Britain. It's a relatively small, pale species, prehensorial claws with pointed teeth at the base, distinct chitin lines, and a very broad ventral plate of the pregenital segment. It's at least partially a littoral creature. Males of this species have 39 or 41 pairs of legs; females have 43 leg pairs.
Geophilus pusillus is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae found in Algeria. It grows up to 11 millimeters in length. The original description of this species is based on ten specimens: five male specimens from Algeria with 31 pairs of legs, and five specimens from Germany. Records from the Alpstein mountains indicate that G. pusillus is a soil-dwelling species that prefers humus-rich soil, but these records deserve confirmation. Some authorities consider the specimens recorded from Europe to be specimens of G. ribauti that have been misidentified as specimens of the Algerian species G. pusillus.
Geophilus bosniensis is a species of soil centipede in the family Geophilidae endemic to Bosnia and Herzegovina. It grows up to 30 millimeters and has 75 leg pairs, as well as sternites unseparated in the median but with a suture line, and sternal pore areas in the trunk segments only. Overall, the identity and phyletic position of this centipede are uncertain.
