The pale little arthropod was found with 4 extra limbs that have evolved over time to deliver sperm. Obviously a male specimen, no female has been found yet, so researchers aren’t sure what they look like.
Found in a marble cavern called Lange Cave in the Sequoia National Park in California, the discovery is due to a major survey by researchers of the caves in the area, lasting from 2002 to 2004, and smaller trips between 2006 and 2009.
During one of the trips in October 2006, cave biologist Jean Krejca discovered the 20mm long creature and sent it away for analysis to millipede specialists Paul Marek of Virginia Tech and William Shear of Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia.
Only one other species belonging to the same Illacme family has ever been found, 150 miles away from the Lange Cave in San Benito County, California.
“I never would have expected that a second species of the leggiest animal on the planet would be discovered in a cave 150 miles away,” Marek said in a statement.
Check out more about the discovery at LiveScience.
