P. trans. vs C. exilcauda

[chau0046]

According to the link from kugelauger(sp?) The Centruroides spp. seems to have higher potency.

It`s tail is much thinner than P. trans. so is it just less likeley to inject enough venom as P. trans or Is the potency factor overide the amount injected?`cause either way it couldn`t be much more than a couple c.c.`s between both of them.


Mat

 

[skinheaddave]

Well, reliable info on the effects of venom is hard to come by. I did, however, find several relevent abstracts on the effect of P.transvaalicus venom. It would seem that the effects can, indeed, be quite pronounced. I suspect the important factors may be two-fold.

Firstly, the amount of venom injected by the transvaalicus woudl be considerable. Not only does it have a much larger vesicle and more powerful delivery system, but the presence of large quantities of (pre-)venom for spraying would also translate into a larger overall venom delivery.

The second point revolves around the specific nature of Parabuthid venom. Remember that not all scorpion venom is created equal. The number of different polypeptides and their actions on the body is an ongoing area of significant research. I found an interesting abstract for:

Bergman, N.J. 1997. Clinical description of Parabuthus transvaalicus scorpionism in Zimbabwe. Toxicon 35:759-71.

which included the quote:

This syndrome from a buthid scorpion resembles in many respects buthid scorpionism described elsewhere in the world, but shows important differences, notably cardiac involvement in the absence of clinical evidence of circulating catecholamines.

In short, a direct comparison is hard. Even just looking at the clinical effects, one could argue that the Parabuthis is more severe by virtue of the fact that it continues to kill people on a regular basis. One must also consider, though, the general health of the people being stung. Also, what part of their range are the C.exilicauda being considered? Mexico or the US? There are too many factors.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[chau0046]

These C. exilcauda`s are from the US ?

 

[skinheaddave]

The ones you got from me were collected near Pheonix, AZ.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Kugellager]

C.exilcauda range from northern Mexico into southern Arizona, southern California and possibly far southwestern New Mexico. They also get transported by vehicles farther north from time to time.

John
];')

 

[chau0046]

Interesting spp. of Centruroides. There a little smaller than C. graciilis. Well my female(Moma gracilis) is a bit on the hefty side, compared to any picks i`ve seen. But a nice bright looking scorp. It`s sort of brown but almost orange in brightness . weird. But there eating well and .l....maybe....going through the "learn how to care for there young" thing pretty soon.

Hehehehe

Mat


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