Editing Centipede (section)

=== Ultimate legs ===
{{main|Ultimate legs}}

[[File:Centipede_ultimate_legs_collage.jpg|thumb|A collage showing the ultimate legs of various centipedes. From top left, proceeding clockwise: ''[[Rhysida]]'' spp., ''[[Scolopocryptops]] trogloclaudatus, [[Scolopendra dehaani]], [[Lithobius proximus]], [[Lithobius forficatus]], [[Scolopendra cingulata]].'']]

Just as the first pair of legs are modified into forcipules, the back legs are modified into "ultimate legs", also called anal legs, caudal legs, and terminal legs.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bonato |first1=Lucio |last2=Edgecombe |first2=Gregory |last3=Lewis |first3=John |last4=Minelli |first4=Alessandro |last5=Pereira |first5=Luis |last6=Shelley |first6=Rowland |last7=Zapparoli |first7=Marzio |date=2010-11-18 |title=A common terminology for the external anatomy of centipedes (Chilopoda) |journal=ZooKeys |issue=69 |pages=17–51 |doi=10.3897/zookeys.69.737 |issn=1313-2970 |pmc=3088443 |pmid=21594038|doi-access=free |bibcode=2010ZooK...69...17B }}</ref> Their use varies between species, but does not include locomotion.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Kenning |first1=Matthes |last2=Müller |first2=Carsten H. G. |last3=Sombke |first3=Andy |date=2017-11-14 |title=The ultimate legs of Chilopoda (Myriapoda): a review on their morphological disparity and functional variability |journal=PeerJ |volume=5 |pages=e4023 |doi=10.7717/peerj.4023 |pmid=29158971 |pmc=5691793 |issn=2167-8359 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Kenning |first1=Matthes |last2=Schendel |first2=Vanessa |last3=Müller |first3=Carsten H. G. |last4=Sombke |first4=Andy |date=2019 |title=Comparative morphology of ultimate and walking legs in the centipede Lithobius forficatus (Myriapoda) with functional implications |journal=Zoological Letters |volume=5 |pages=3 |doi=10.1186/s40851-018-0115-x |issn=2056-306X |pmc=6330759 |pmid=30656061 |doi-access=free }}</ref> The ultimate legs may be elongated and thin, thickened, or pincer-like.<ref name=":1"/> They are frequently [[Sexual dimorphism|sexually dimorphic]], and may play a role in mating rituals.<ref name=":0"/><ref name=":1"/> Because glandular pores occur more frequently on ultimate legs than on the "walking" legs, they may serve a sensory role.<ref name=":0"/><ref name=":1"/> They are sometimes used in defensive postures, and some species use them to capture prey, defend themselves against predators, or suspend themselves from objects such as branches, using the legs as pincers.<ref name=":0"/> Several species use their ultimate legs upon encountering another centipede, trying to grab the body of the other centipede.<ref name=":2"/>

Members of the genus ''[[Alipes (centipede)|Alipes]]'' can [[stridulate]] their leaf-like ultimate legs to distract or threaten predators.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Kronmüller |first1=Christian |last2=Lewis |first2=John G. J. |date=2015-06-30 |title=On the function of the ultimate legs of some Scolopendridae (Chilopoda, Scolopendromorpha) |journal=ZooKeys |issue=510 |pages=269–278 |doi=10.3897/zookeys.510.8674 |issn=1313-2970 |pmc=4523778 |pmid=26257548|doi-access=free |bibcode=2015ZooK..510..269K }}</ref> ''[[Rhysida immarginata|Rhysida immarginata togoensis]]'' makes a faint creaking sound when it swings its ultimate legs.<ref name=":2"/>