This beautiful millipede is commonly known as an African CHOCOLATE MILLIPEDE because of its colour!  You definitely would not want to eat it though because like all millipedes its body contains a chemical which is very nasty to taste.  This prevents it from being eaten, as any animal which bites a millipede will get a mouthful of the chemical and will feel very sick straight away!

If this chemical, which is sometimes referred to as 'ink', gets onto your skin it will stain your skin bright orange to start with, then the orange stain will gradually change to a dark red/purple stain which will then stay on your skin for a couple of days even if you wash them very well.  If the ink gets onto your clothing it will never be able to be washed out as it is a very strong and permanent stain!  Thankfully none of the millipedes which I keep produce their ink very often, so my hands are not always stained with red or purple unlike other millipede keepers I know!