Neotype designation and a diagnostic account for the centipede,Scolopendra gigantea L. 1758, with an account ofS. galapagoensis Bollman 1889 (Chilopoda Scolopendromorpha Scolopendridae)

The oldest species-group name in the chilopod order Scolopendromorpha and family Scolopendridae, Scolopendra gigantea Linnaeus 1758, is stabilized in accordance with the current concept by designating a neotype specimen from northern Venezuela. The species occurs in northern Colombia and Venezuela, and on Trinidad, Isla Margarita, Curaçao, and Aruba; records from the US Virgin Islands, Haiti, Mexico, and Honduras are deemed to represent accidental human importations or labeling errors. Scolopendra galapagoensis Bollman 1889 occurs in Cocos Island, the Galápagos Islands, and along the Pacific Coast of South America and the western slope of the Andes from Ecuador to southern Peru. Scolopendra gigantea weyrauchi Bücherl 1950 is placed in synonymy under S. galapagoensis Bollman 1889.