Use Care Changing The Water Bowl

[Pofecks]

This guy was not so lucky...

http://www.local6.com/news/7001577/detail.html


A South Florida man nearly died this weekend after being stung by a rare Vietnamese centipede considered to have one of the most toxic stings in the world, according to a Local 6 News report.

Authorities said the man was changing the water bowl of the 7-inch Vietnamese centipede he was keeping as a pet when it quickly stung his hand.

The victim, who was not identified, was in stable condition at Baptist Hospital in South Florida, according to a report.

Since the Vietnamese centipede is so rare, anti-venin is not kept readily available.

Officials said because of its large fangs and toxic venom, the centipede's sting can be 10 times worse than a scorpion.

This is only the second case of a Vietnamese centipede bite in the United States.

 

[cacoseraph]

This guy was not so lucky...

http://www.local6.com/news/7001577/detail.html


A South Florida man nearly died this weekend after being stung by a rare Vietnamese centipede considered to have one of the most toxic stings in the world, according to a Local 6 News report.

Authorities said the man was changing the water bowl of the 7-inch Vietnamese centipede he was keeping as a pet when it quickly stung his hand.

The victim, who was not identified, was in stable condition at Baptist Hospital in South Florida, according to a report.

Since the Vietnamese centipede is so rare, anti-venin is not kept readily available.

Officials said because of its large fangs and toxic venom, the centipede's sting can be 10 times worse than a scorpion.

This is only the second case of a Vietnamese centipede bite in the United States.

wow, this might merit calling in for some fact checking!

well, i emailed the webstaff at that news site. here is my message

"Greetings,

I would like to know where you got some of your informtion regarding the story found here:
http://www.local6.com/news/7001577/detail.html

The headline for the story is "Centipede Sting Nearly Kills Florida Man"

The reason i ask is that centipede venom is not accepted as deadly by ANY myriapodologist i have ever read about. Myriapodologists are scientists devoted to the study of centipedes, millipedes, and a few other many-legged invertebrates. Scorpions on the other hand, kill thousands yearly. So you can see your claim that centipede bites are "10 times worse" is laughable at best. I am a keeper and breeder of many such animals and thus it behooves me greatly to know intimately the toxicity of every animal i keep. Scolopendra subspinipes, or the Giant Vietnamese centipede to use the generally accepted common name has venom that *can* cause inordinate amounts of pain, but in a normal healthy man there is more risk driving to work in the morning than the bite of a S. subspinipes. There has NEVER been a medically validated and recorded death from centipede envenomation and only a single case of hearsay, reported and often quoted on the internet, regarding a small Filipino girl who was bitten directly on the head by a large centipede.

The invertebrate keeping community has a hard enough time fighting all the prejudice and hatred for our pets. Please do not allow misinformation to further sway the public.

Thanks for your time, and if you would like any further information about centipedes i would be happy to get back to you with citations or expert opinion from leading myriapodologists.

Thanks again,

Andrew Olson"

 

[Steven]

anyone seen Mark online lately ?

 

[cacoseraph]

anyone seen Mark online lately ?

oh man!

you're bad!

lol

 

[PA7R1CK]

Good job

wow, this might merit calling in for some fact checking!

well, i emailed the webstaff at that news site. here is my message

"Greetings,

I would like to know where you got some of your informtion regarding the story found here:
http://www.local6.com/news/7001577/detail.html

The headline for the story is "Centipede Sting Nearly Kills Florida Man"

The reason i ask is that centipede venom is not accepted as deadly by ANY myriapodologist i have ever read about. Myriapodologists are scientists devoted to the study of centipedes, millipedes, and a few other many-legged invertebrates. Scorpions on the other hand, kill thousands yearly. So you can see your claim that centipede bites are "10 times worse" is laughable at best. I am a keeper and breeder of many such animals and thus it behooves me greatly to know intimately the toxicity of every animal i keep. Scolopendra subspinipes, or the Giant Vietnamese centipede to use the generally accepted common name has venom that *can* cause inordinate amounts of pain, but in a normal healthy man there is more risk driving to work in the morning than the bite of a S. subspinipes. There has NEVER been a medically validated and recorded death from centipede envenomation and only a single case of hearsay, reported and often quoted on the internet, regarding a small Filipino girl who was bitten directly on the head by a large centipede.

The invertebrate keeping community has a hard enough time fighting all the prejudice and hatred for our pets. Please do not allow misinformation to further sway the public.

Thanks for your time, and if you would like any further information about centipedes i would be happy to get back to you with citations or expert opinion from leading myriapodologists.

Thanks again,

Andrew Olson"

 

[Stylopidae]

Officials said because of its large fangs and toxic venom, the centipede's sting can be 10 times worse than a scorpion.

What scorpion? What species, subfamily or tribe? There's thousands of species, of which maybe only a few hundred are toxic.

Androconoctus, Parabuthus, Leirus, C. Exacullida, Babycurus (?), Hottenhotta, Tityus

Those are the genusus I am aware of that have medically signiffigant venom.

(yes...I am aware that it is an incomplete list)

Not too many

 

[Bigboy]

This thread has been a very enjoyable read. Thanks for the article and the delightful letter

 

[Stylopidae]

Do I really have to point out that they bite and do not sting

 

[Aviculariinae]

Classic. I wonder did it spin him into a cocoon and the offspring burst out through his chest

 

[Steven]

Classic. I wonder did it spin him into a cocoon and the offspring burst out through his chest

can they do that ?



wow man,... i need to get me some centipedes a.s.a.p.

 

[cacoseraph]

can they do that ?



wow man,... i need to get me some centipedes a.s.a.p.

you have to be sure to get the ones that the news agencies report on

*that* is the good stuff... exploding cocoons, telepathy, pyrokinesis, teleportation...

centipedes are actually aliens. i think i read that in an article one time

 

[bananaman]

awesome letter to the newspaper

 

[Galapoheros]

Man!, talk about "spin". I mean I've heard/read that it's very painful. But, well no wonder the general public is at war with bugs! "Be scared! Run away. Kill, kill, kill the arthropods! Drama. If they knew what they were talking about Caco, you'd get a reply. So I bet you don't get one. That was a good one! Man this is where phobias come from. People let others tell them how it is instead of using a little bit of their own reasoning. Hmmm, I wonder if that guy was really just trying to pick it up? But they are very fast, aren't they? The water bowl changing thing sounds a little fishy, but possible.

 

[insect714]

I just got off of the phone with the news room at that station, the guy posted it is either going to pull it or get it revised, I expalained to him how a "story" like that is just going to sensationalize the situation more and cause more of a panic by giving out false info.

 

[bananaman]

awesome! did they say anything else? did they apologize? daaaamn theeeem!

 

[insect714]

nope all they guy would say to me was he did not know that it was incorrect because he pulled it right off the wire typed it and posted it at face value with doing no checking of material value:wall:

 

[bananaman]

baaaaaaaaaad reporters...

misinforming the public? what a surprise huh?

 

[Scorp guy]

rare? 10x? they make it sound like something out of an indianna jones movie you know the news, theyll lie and do what ever it takes to get

 

[Natco]

You mean their not form the movies?????

 

[CedrikG]

What a stupid reporter ... What else, do centipede can poison you by telepaty with their antena ?

Interesting tread, hope they will answer your email cacoseraph