Earlier this month I moved into a new apartment, and I soon found out it had centipedes.
The first time I came across one, I was somewhat alarmed by it. I went online to find out what it was, only to find out they are called House Centipedes. I guess they get their name because, you know, they are commonly found in houses. That made them seem considerably less exotic when I found that out, but I was still interested to learn a few other things about the little freaks. They are supposedly a benefit to any house because they eat spiders, cockroaches, and other pests. Another article said they can live up to six years, but I find that a little hard to believe.
Anyway, I came home Saturday night to find one on the wall next to my bed. I explained to the centipede that his chosen location was “not cool”, and I proceeded to capture him and relocate him to an empty applesauce jar.
DEATH MATCH: Round One
The next day, I decided to take the centipede to my mom and dad’s house to see if I could find some bugs to feed it. My dad found a couple of decent sized ants on the patio, so we tossed them into the jar and waited for the bloodbath to begin. Well, the death match turned out to be anti-climactic as the ants sort of chased the centipede around like they thought they might be able to haul it out of the jar, while the centipede just jumped and ran away whenever they got close. The centipede was worthless.
DEATH MATCH: Round Two
This morning I woke up and started getting ready for work. I checked on the jar, and found the two ants and the centipede just sort of hanging out. I went to turn on the lamp, and found a NEW centipede chilling on the wall. I caught that one and put him in the same jar, and all the bugs inside started freaking out and tried getting away from each other. There’s only about a 5-inch diameter of wiggle room in that jar, so things livened right up.
Then, moments later, I found a spider on the wall. I was excited.
When I tossed the spider in, the centipedes both ran away from the ants and the spider. The ants didn’t hesitate to start dragging the spider away, although who knows where they thought they were going to take it. Then the death match started to get really cool when the ants started pulling the spider in two different directions, and they ripped off the spider’s leg. The spider retaliated by grabbing an ant and biting it’s head. I had to get going, so I told them to “Have fun!” and I left for work.
DEATH MATCH: Conclusion?
I was surprised to come back home and find there were only the two centipedes in the jar. The jar had air holes, but I was pretty sure they were too small for any of the smaller bugs to get through. Did I underestimate the smaller bugs? Or did the centipedes pony up and consume the other bugs whole? I don’t know! All I know is that, in the name of science, I need to understand my abundantly-legged insectoids more in order for me to know exactly what I’m dealing with.
And besides, what could chicks possibly dig more than a cool guy that hangs out with bugs in a jar?
Straight up.
However, the next day we all came to our desks only to find something that defied all logic and reason. Every single living, breathing employee had received an over-sized, massive blue dot. It looked like a mouse pad; it was felt on top with a rubber no-slip bottom. But it was HUGE. Some people thought it was supposed to go on top of your desk, while others thought it was supposed to be a rug. However, we all agreed that it was something we couldn’t really use and didn’t really need.
