We have already seen the animals with the most eyes, but now it is time to find out which one has the most legs of all the animal kingdom. While most people will not be surprised with many of the creatures on this list you might be surprised at some of them…
10 – Camel Spider (Solifugae) – 8 Legs
It might be called a camel spider, but it isn’t a spider at all. In fact, it might look like it has ten legs as well, but it only has 8! The front 2 are actually pedipalps (the second pair of appendages).
9 – Giant Tiger Prawn (Penaeus monodon) – 10 Legs
These are not just the biggest prawns in the sea they are also part of the Decapoda family which means they often have ten legs! While it is not the only animal in this family I thought it was worth a mention as it is the biggest of its kind.
8 – Hermit Crab (Paguroidea) – 10 Legs
These crabs and many others are all part of the “Decapoda” family and its name literally means “ten-footed”! While they are not all that dangerious I have had a few nasty toe bites from several of them while at the beach rockpooling.
7 – Woodlouse (Oniscidea) – 14 Legs
They have several names (Hog-louse, Roly-poly bug, a Porcelet) and they are pretty common all over the world. With a total of 7 pairs of pereopods (legs) that have a single branch, they are pretty much the smaller version of our next animal…
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6 – Giant Isopod (Bathynomus giganteus) – 14 Legs
These amazing creatures are like something from a horror movie and have seven pairs of pereopods (legs) that have a single branch. You might not ever get to see one due to the fact that they live between 550 to 7020 feet deep down in the ocean floor, but they are amazing nevertheless.
5 – Hickory Horned Devil (Citheronia regalis) – 16 Legs
This is the longest species of caterpillar in the world and most of them have 8 pairs of legs. While it might be as long as a footlong hotdog and about the same size they are mostly harmless and can make pretty good pets if taken care of properly.
4 – Symphylans (Aka: Garden Centipedes) (Chilopoda) – 50+ Legs
Most forms of garden Centipede have 50+ legs and can grow up to 8cm (3 in) in length. While most are pretty harmless they are very predatory meaning most will bite if touch or even nip if approached with a finger.
3 – The Peruvian Giant Yellow-leg Centipede (Scolopendra gigantea) – 60+ Legs
This is the largest species of Centipede and can often measure 30 centimetres (12 in) but yet they don’t have the most legs in the Centipede family despite their size. This species has also been known to kill humans due to their powerful venom and deep bites.
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2 – Centipede (Himantarium gabrielis) – 70+ Legs
This is yet another creature that you won’t be surprised to see, but what might surprise you is the number of legs it really has. While some people will tell you it has 100 legs the number of legs is very variable from 87 to 179 in males and 95 to 171 in females.
1 – The Siphonorhinid Millipede (Illacme plenipes) – 750 Legs
It will come as no surprise to learn it is a millipede at the top spot, but what you might not know is that it has 750 legs on average and not the 1,000 often said. In fact, not a single specimen has been found to have more than this number, but on the flip side of that, it is rare for them to have less than that number as well.
