Infraclass HELMINTHOMORPHA Pocock, 1887

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Introduction

All Diplopoda except bristly millipedes (Penicillata) and pill millipedes (Pentazonia) are included in the subclass Helminthomorpha, which in consequence, is extremely heterogeneous (Hoffman 1982). Most helminthomorphs have the body form that non-zoologists recognise as typical for millipedes: long and thin. However, body shape, number of legs and other anatomical details vary greatly within the subclass. One unifying feature is the modification of (at least) one pair of legs on the seventh segment of the adult male to form specialised sperm-transfer structures called gonopods. Eleven orders are currently recognised within Helminthomorpha (Hoffman 1980), of which seven (six native and one introduced) are present in Australia.

General References

Hoffman, R.L. 1980. Classification of the Diplopoda. Geneva : Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, Genève 238 pp.

Hoffman, R.L. 1982. Diplopoda. pp. 689-724 in Parker, S.P. (ed.). Synopsis and Classification of Living Organisms. Vol. 2. New York : McGraw-Hill.

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