About Gosodesmus claremontus Chamberlin, 1922
Gosodesmus is a genus of platydesmidan millipede, described by Ralph V. Chamberlin in 1922. It is widely distributed in the U.S. state of California, and is monotypic, represented by only one species: Gosodesmus claremontus, commonly called the pink feather boa millipede. Individuals of this species vary in color from bright pink to coral, and may have a black or purple dorsal stripe. Their body length ranges from 17 to 27 mm (0.67 to 1.06 in), and they can have up to 81 body segments. Gosodesmus claremontus is found in the Coast Ranges and the Sierra Nevada, and is often located within rotted wood, especially rotted oak wood. In 2020, chemist Dr. Tappey Jones of Virginia Military Institute and colleagues discovered a new natural alkaloid product in the chemical defense secretion of G. claremontus: 7-(4-methylpent-3-en-1-yl)-1,2,3,5,8,8a-hexahydroindolizine, which is named gosodesmine.
