A Big Discovery in the Mountains

The National Park Service announces four new species found in the GSMNP

The Great Smoky Mountains were already home to more than 13,000 known species of animals. And it turns out that number is still growing. As part of its ongoing All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory and Discover Life in America initiatives, the park is working to identify the many and mini species within the park. 

Mini? Yes. Species variety within the park happens amongst the tiny creatures that can develop in completely isolated communities that are really separated by relatively small distances to you and me. 

I mean, we ain’t got a lotta variety in the big creatures. We don’t see a lot of grizzly, polar, or koala bears running around the park, do we? But among rare tiny fish, insect, or invertebrates? The Smokies remain ripe for the discovery of new species. 

Case in point, the National Park Service recently announced that four new species of millipedes have just been discovered in the mountains.

What is a millipede?

They are, in fact, tiny land shrimp with a lot of legs. I’m kidding, a little.

Millipedes are tiny invertebrates that look like worms with many legs. However, they are not insects, according to the National Wildlife Federation. They are, in fact, more closely related to lobsters, shrimp, and crayfish than bugs. There are more than 7,000 species in the world, 1,400 in North America, and 80 in the Smoky Mountains. 

“Four brand-new millipede species have been discovered in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the GSMNP announced. “Two have only been found in a single location each, while the other two are more widespread across the park. That’s a lot of legs added to the biodiversity list.”

While we’re addressing what a millipede is, we should note that the vast majority of them do not have 1,000 legs as the name would imply. In fact, many have fewer than 100 legs each, which is especially confusing when considering that centipedes exist in the world. 

Maybe the biggest news to come out of this announcement is that if you’re trying to figure out whether the lobster-cousin crawling up your leg is a centipede or a millipede, counting its little legs won’t do you much good at all.

Does this mean the park now has more things that can sting or bite me?

No – for two different reasons. First, these guys have been here; we just now found them. And secondly, millipedes don’t sting, and while they can technically bite, it’s more of a gentle nibble. A millipede could gnaw away at your dead skin cells all day, and you wouldn’t know it. Except, they can release foul-smelling, irritating fluids that can cause skin discoloration, itching, or mild burns, especially in your eyes. This is why you’ve often heard the old Appalachian warning about not rubbing millipedes in your eyes. 

Now, millipedes’ cousins – aka the centipedes – will bite the stuffing out of you. Why the difference? Well, millipedes are detritivores – they consume decaying plant matter – so they don’t need speed or venom or even really to be able to bite that hard. 

Centipedes, on the other hand, are carnivores. They eat insects and small arthropods, which is the phylum that covers insects, spiders, centipedes, and millipedes, as well as crabs, shrimp, and others. We’re getting a little too middle school biology here, so let’s just leave it at that. 

What does this mean for the park?

In terms of your visit? Probably very little. I’m sure there are some folks who come to the mountains trying to see all the various species like they’re out here catching Pokémon, but the vast majority of us aren’t going to care which of the 80 species of millipedes we encounter unless we rub them in our eyes. For the record, there are about 62 centipede species in the park so, you know, be on the lookout for that.

In terms of the ATBI efforts, it’s a big step forward

The ATBI – an initiative of Discover Life in America – began in the park in 1998 when the number of total known species in the park -animal and plant – was around 10,000. Today, that number is over 22,000. The crazy part? The total number of species in the park is estimated to be between 60,000 and 80,000. That means as much as 70% of the park’s species have yet to be discovered.

“The ATBI’s core concept is straightforward: to effectively manage and protect our environment, we must first understand its biodiversity,” the NPS says. “This involves not only identifying species but also mapping their habitats, genetic diversity, population densities, and interactions like symbiosis and predation. The Smokies ATBI represents a collaborative effort among scientists across various fields to discover new species, identify emerging threats, and safeguard this complex and valuable ecosystem.”

What do you think about the new effort to identify more species in the park? Let us know in the comments and on the socials!