Ophyiulus pilosus (Newport, 1843)

(Order Julida, family Julidae)

This shiny black julid is thought to be native to western Europe, where it is widespread and abundant. It has been introduced to the USA and New Zealand (Blower 1985) and probably occurs in gardens on the Australian mainland. In Tasmanian backyards O. pilosus is often extremely abundant. Householders know it as a thin black millipede up to 30 mm long that wriggles vigorously when disturbed, rather than coiling in a flat spiral. It has been reported entering houses in several localities.

Like Cylindroiulus species, O. pilosus has successfully invaded Tasmanian bushland, but to my knowledge only after serious disturbance (clearfelling, frequent burning, weed infestation). The map below shows some of the known localities for O. pilosus. It is likely to occur in most towns and on many farms. The earliest Tasmanian specimens I've seen are dated 1937.

(Some) localities for O. pilosus. Scale bar = 100 km.
For an interactive map with more up-to-date localities, go to the mapper page.

More information:
 
Biology - Blower (1985), Hopkin & Read (1992)
Distribution, conservation and general - Taylor et al. (1997), Mesibov (1999)