Is it certain immediate death to move a house centipede outdoors?

[Anonymous]

They can bite you, especially the 2-3 inch ones.

[Anonymous]

I think if this happens again I will rescue from the sink and relocate to floor or basement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The way I read the title, I thought op was fearing for her life.

The bug will find his way back to you, don’t worry.

This gave me a laugh. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t usually kill house bugs tbh, usually just move them outside, unless mosquito etc. Don’t get many bugs.

Approaching midnight tonight I found a centipede in the sink, and I slipped him into a big yogurt container and dropped him outside. He scurried off to the sounds of crickets etc.

Presumably this large centipede had lived his whole prior life inside my house, and he may be in for something of a shock out there. Is he going to get eaten immediately?

I’m sort of wondering if I should have just moved him to the basement. At lease he’s free now and will have an adventure?

Realize I’m worrying too much about a bug but, you know, we all just have our “one wild and precious life” etc (thank you, Mary Oliver).

Tell me, what else should I have done?

You should have shut the light off and gone back to bed.

House centipedes are a blessing and absolutely nothing but. You will almost never see them, but they will live in your walls and eat all the nasty bugs you don't want in your house.

Never kill or relocate a house centipede. It's your roommate. It doesn't want to harm you, it wants to save your from the destruction of all the nasty bugs. Be grateful if you have one.

I forgot to answer your question - no, it is not certain death for the house centipede outdoors, and there is a very good chance he's already made his way back inside your house or will very shortly. Don't evict him again.

Yes, a house centipede can bite you. It might hurt a wee bit, nothing like a wasp sting or even as irritating as a mosquito bite. VERY unlikely to ever happen, UNLESS you pick up the centipede in your bare hands.

Again, think of house centipede as a benevolent roommate who keeps opposite hours and whose presence is only made known by the disappearance of garbage from the premises.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I doubt he lived his whole life in your house unless you have a big infestation.

Putting him out at night was helpful. More cover from birds and he can explore without getting dried out.

From wiki:
"Unlike its shorter-legged but larger tropical cousins, S. coleoptrata can live its entire life inside a building, usually on the ground levels of homes. While many homeowners may be unsettled by house centipedes due to their speed and appearance, they pose little to no threat towards humans, and are often beneficial as they catch other, more harmful pests, such as cockroaches."

The operative word here is "CAN" (live its entire life inside).

They come from somewhere first. They don't spontaneously generate/spawn into a house like a Minecraft animal. Therefore they have to.be capable of surviving outside before they get inside.

[Anonymous]

Gross.

[Anonymous]

Not gross! BENEFICIAL.

Hey bub, mind if I crash here and eat your roaches before they despoil your nice clean house?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not gross! BENEFICIAL.

Hey bub, mind if I crash here and eat your roaches before they despoil your nice clean house?

Thanks for this. I was hungry, but now my appetite is gone.

No need for ozempic when there are disgusting close-up pictures of insects and their horrific legs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I doubt he lived his whole life in your house unless you have a big infestation.

Putting him out at night was helpful. More cover from birds and he can explore without getting dried out.

From wiki:
"Unlike its shorter-legged but larger tropical cousins, S. coleoptrata can live its entire life inside a building, usually on the ground levels of homes. While many homeowners may be unsettled by house centipedes due to their speed and appearance, they pose little to no threat towards humans, and are often beneficial as they catch other, more harmful pests, such as cockroaches."

The operative word here is "CAN" (live its entire life inside).

They come from somewhere first. They don't spontaneously generate/spawn into a house like a Minecraft animal. Therefore they have to.be capable of surviving outside before they get inside.

They don’t come from other house centipedes doing the deed in your house?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not gross! BENEFICIAL.

Hey bub, mind if I crash here and eat your roaches before they despoil your nice clean house?

Thanks for this. I was hungry, but now my appetite is gone.

No need for ozempic when there are disgusting close-up pictures of insects and their horrific legs.

You see disgusting, I see the brilliance of evolution. One of us is a scientist.

[Anonymous]

I have toddlers.

Know what kills toddlers? - Black widow spiders. House centipedes eat Black widows.

Our other venomous spider in the DMG is the Brown Recluse: its venom is necrotizing ( do not google !).

Yep: centipedes eat those too.

In fact: they also eat termites. And cockroaches (ew!). And bedbugs (not that we ever had these). In fact, we have never had any bugs (except ants. Centipedes don’t eat those sadly).

The centipedes can stay. They get moved to the garage or basement if they present a nuisance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I woke up once years ago with a house centipede crawling on my cheek. I kill them all after that.

She was trying be your friend and then you squished her?

How dare she not ask for consent first

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I doubt he lived his whole life in your house unless you have a big infestation.

Putting him out at night was helpful. More cover from birds and he can explore without getting dried out.

From wiki:
"Unlike its shorter-legged but larger tropical cousins, S. coleoptrata can live its entire life inside a building, usually on the ground levels of homes. While many homeowners may be unsettled by house centipedes due to their speed and appearance, they pose little to no threat towards humans, and are often beneficial as they catch other, more harmful pests, such as cockroaches."

The operative word here is "CAN" (live its entire life inside).

They come from somewhere first. They don't spontaneously generate/spawn into a house like a Minecraft animal. Therefore they have to.be capable of surviving outside before they get inside.

They don’t come from other house centipedes doing the deed in your house?

How did the first house centipedes get inside?

[Anonymous]

Get a grip everyone.
Most homes do not have roaches inside them nor black widows.
Spiders are common by freshwater lakes or rainy places (England) where there is a large ongoing supply of insects.

[Anonymous]

If I found one crawling up from the sink pipes I’d kill it and wash it back down. No thanks. Plenty of prehistoric bugs out there.