Trichopolydesmidae

Trichopolydesmidae
(Scale view 1mm)
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Myriapoda
Class: Diplopoda
Order: Polydesmida
Family: Trichopolydesmidae
Verhoeff, 1910

Trichopolydesmidae is a family of millipedes in the order Polydesmida. Some authorities deem this family to include Fuhrmannodesmidae, Mastigonodesmidae, Macrosternodesmidae, and Nearctodesmidae as junior synonyms. Others adopt narrower definitions of this family, for example, including only Fuhrmannodesmidae and Mastigonodesmidae as synonyms.

Under the broader definition, this family includes about 140 species distributed among about 75 genera. These species are found mainly in the Northern Hemisphere, especially in the tropics but also in temperate regions. About 80 species and 55 genera are tropical, whereas about 60 species and 20 genera are Holarctic.