Many Legs, Many Lives, the Natural History of the Myriapoda of Eastern North America

Sure, you’ve spotted a millipede on a hike, but have you met its 200 cousins?

The myriapod world is far richer and stranger than most people realize. Dr. Derek Hennen will introduce you to the full cast of millipedes, centipedes, symphylans, and pauropods. Some are familiar, some are nearly invisible, and all of them play essential roles in breaking down leaf litter, cycling nutrients, and keeping the forest floor alive. In this talk, Dr. Derek Hennen reveals the full diversity of these arthropods and introduces you to the species you’ve walked past your whole life without ever noticing.

Dr. Derek Hennen is one of the leading myriapod experts in the United States. As an entomologist, naturalist, and taxonomist, Dr. Hennen has reshaped our understanding of Appalachian biodiversity.

• He has described more than 60 new millipede species, many from the eastern U.S.
• His fieldwork spans the Appalachians, Mexico, and Vietnam, with a focus on millipede evolution and systematics.
• He authored Millipedes of Ohio, the first field guide of its kind for the region.
• He regularly leads public hikes, workshops, and ID trainings that make the leaf‑litter world accessible to everyone.
• He serves as a Research Associate with the Virginia Museum of Natural History and as Secretary of the Virginia Natural History Society.
• He currently works as a Field Zoologist for the Virginia Natural Heritage Program.