Arthrorhabdus, from the Greek ἄρθρον, a joint, and ῥάβδος, a staff, is a genus of Scolopendrid centipede in the subfamilyScolopendrinae. Species are found in Mexico and the Southern United States (A. pygmaeus), Australia (A. paucispinus & A. mjöbergi), and South Africa (A. formosus). Since a reapprasial in the genus in 2010, the genus only has four species. It may be polyphyletic.
Arthrorhabdus species bear several morphological similarities to those of the genus Cormocephalus: their spiracles, eyes, and mouthparts are the same. It also resembles members of the genera Scolopendra and Asanada, but can be differentiated from other genera by a variety of characteristics, specifically the head not overlapping the first tergite, additionally from Scolopendra by the shape of the mouthparts and spiracles, and further from Cormocephalus by morphological features on the legs.
Arthrorhabdus species have between 18 and 26 antennomeres (antennae segments).
1234Shelley, R.M. & Chagas-Jr, Amazonas. (2004). The centipede genus Arthrorhabdus Pocock, 1891, in the Western hemisphere: Potential occurrence of A-pygmaeus (Pocock, 1895) in Belize (Scolopendromorpha: Scolopendridae: Scolopendrinae). Western North American Naturalist. 64. 532-537.
↑United States National Museum; Museum, United States National; Institution, Smithsonian; States, United (1961). Proceedings of the United States National Museum. Vol.111. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.]