VENOMOUS SNAKES

Venomous means poisonous!  Take 5 giant steps back when you see a snake; then run and tell a grown-up.  Snake’s are only 1 inch tall, and they’re scared of you!   Most snakes are not venomous, but a few are.   If you get bitten by a snake, wash the bite well; remember what the snake looks like; and get a grown-up to take you to the doctor.

Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake (Crotalus adamanteus) is the largest snake in the U.S. (up to 6 feet long!).  It has brown, black, and tan diamond marks on its back.  This snake lives in forests near palmetto bushes.  It makes its home in old animal burrows (holes in the ground).   It is a good swimmer.  This snake does NOT always rattle before it strikes. 

Dusky Pigmy Rattlesnake (Sistrurus miliarius barbouri) is usually less than 1 ½ feet long and not even as thick as a grown-up’s thumb.  It is dark gray with black and brown patches.  The rattle is very tiny and hard to see.  It makes a small sound like an insect buzz.  This snake lives near marshes and ponds under palmetto bushes.

Florida Cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus conanti) is a fat water snake also called a Water Moccasin.  He is usually between 2 and 4 feet long.  When he is young, he is light brown with black and olive patterns.  As he gets older, black covers up the patterns, and he looks like an all-black snake.  When he’s angry, he opens his mouth wide, showing the white inside. This snake does NOT have a rattle.   Cottonmouths live near lakes and ditches, & may strike many times.

Eastern Coral Snakes (Micrurius fulvius fulvius) are skinny snakes about 2 feet long.  They have rings of red, yellow and black all along their bodies.   Their noses are always black. They do not have long fangs and have to actually chew on you to get the venom in.  Many snakes look like the coral snake.  Remember:  “Red and yellow kills a fellow.  Red and black is safe for Jack.”  Coral snakes [venomous] have red and yellow touching; scarlet king snakes [non-venomous] have red and black stripes touching.  Don’t get close to either one!

RESOURCES: 

Behler, John and King, F. Wayne.  The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians.  New York:  Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1992.

Florida Game & Fresh Water Fish Commission pamphlet Florida’s Venomous Snakes. Florida.

Foster, Steven and Caras, Roger.  Peterson Field Guide to Venomous Animals and Poisonous Plants.   New York:  Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994

 

DANGEROUS ARACHNIDS

Venomous means poisonous!  If you get bitten by a spider, get a grown-up to catch it.  That way, if you need to go to the doctor, you can show the doctor what bit you.  Most spider bites won’t make you sick, but a few will, so watch out!

Black Widow Spider (Latrodectus mactans) is known for being black with a red hour-glass shape on its belly.  This is only true for the girls, which are 1 inch long.  These spiders like to live under logs, rocks, and woodpiles.  The female often eats the male after they mate; that’s why she’s called a “widow”  She protects the egg cases she hangs in her web (see picture), but when there are no eggs, she would rather run than bite you.  Black Widows weave a funnel-shaped web to catch insects.

Brown Recluse Spider (Loxosceles reclusa) is called a “fiddleback” because it has a dark brown fiddle-shaped mark on its yellow head.  Its back and belly are brown.  It likes to live in attics, closets, and garages. Outside, they stay under piles of rocks, wood, and leaves.   If they are disturbed they won’t run away, THEY WILL BITE.  The bite doesn’t hurt much, but it will later!  You should go to the doctor fast.

Scorpions were probably the very first arachnids.  Scorpions look like a lobster with a sharp stinger on the end of their long, skinny tails.  They have two large claws which help them hold onto their prey (insects and small mice).  Most scorpions are nocturnal (active at night).  They hide under logs during the day.  If you see scorpions around, be sure to shake out your shoes before you put them on!

RESOURCES:

        “Black Widow Spiders.”  Http://www.desertusa.comjuly97/u_bwindow.html. (12/12/97).
          “Brown Recluse Spiders.”  Http://www.desertusa.com/july97/du_bwindow.html.  (12/12/97).
          Foster, Steven and Caras, Roger.  Peterson Field Guide to Venomous Animals and Poisonous Plants.  New York:  Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994.
          “Hey, A Brown Recluse Spider Bit Me.”  Http://www.powerup.com.an/~glen/recluse.htm.  (12/12/97).
          “Scorpiones.”  Http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/arthopoda/arachnida/scorpiones.html. (1/15/98).

STINGING INSECTS & BUGS

Honey Bees (Apis melliflora) are a fuzzy yellow and black. They only sting if you they are defending their home or themselves.  Bees drink nectar and eat pollen from flowers.  Nectar is sugar water, just like a soft drink.  Be sure to cover your drink if bees are around.  You don’t want to get stung in the mouth!  If a bee stings a large creature, like a frog or a person, her stinger sticks in the victim’s skin, tearing her in half and killing her.  The stinger keeps pumping venom into your skin, so get a grown-up to scrape it out.

Yellow Jackets (Vespula sps.)  build large nest in logs, stumps, and in the ground.  Sometimes people accidentally step on the nest and get stung badly.  When a yellow jacket stings you, it does not die.  In fact, it may sting you many times, so stay away from them!  They have black and yellow (or white) stripes and are not fuzzy like bees. They sometimes steal bits of food from picnics.  Adult wasps drink nectar and feed insects to their babies.

Centipedes have flat, narrow bodies up to 4 inches long, with one pair of legs coming off of each segment.   They can be red, orange, or brown with venomous claws beneath their head.  They use these claws to poison the insects they eat.  Most centipedes will try to run away instead of biting you.  A millipede is NOT venomous.  It eats plants and usually has 2 pairs of legs for each body segment.

RESOURCES:

Florida Cooperative Extension Service Pamphlets.

Foster, Steven and Caras, Roger.  Peterson Field Guide to Venomous Animals and Poisonous Plants.  New York:  Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994.

Frisch, Karl Von.  The Dancing Bees.  New York:  Hartcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1953.

Heinrich, Bernd.  Bumblebee Economics.  Cambridge:  Harvard University Press, 1979.

Milne, Lorus and Margery.  National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects & Spiders.   New York:  Alfred A. Knopf, 1995.

Sanford, Dr. Malcolm T.  Professor and Apiculturist, University of Florida, 1996.

 

STINGING CATERPILLARS

Puss Moth Caterpillars (Megalopyge opercularis) grow into flannel moths.  While it’s a caterpillar, it’s about 1 inch long, with a fat humpback.  It is covered with brown hair that lays down all over its body like fur.   These hair have poison glands; touching this caterpillar causes a VERY painful sting.  Quickly wash the sting area to remove any left-over spines.  These hairs protect the caterpillar from birds, lizards, and cats.

Moth Caterpillars (Automeris io)  are 2 to 3 inches long.  They are bright green with lots of green spines that can really sting you.  They have pink and white stripes on their sides.  They grow into Io Motha, beautiful large brown and yellow moths with giant black eyespots on their wings.  The eyespots look like owl eyes and can scare predators.

Saddleback Moth Caterpillars (Sibine stimulea) are about 1 inch long and will grow into a small brown moth.  The caterpillars are bright green with brown at each end.  They also have a dark brown saddle-like mark on their back and lots of tan-colored spines.  These spines can sting you.  Watch out!

Tussock Moth Caterpillars (Orgyia sps.) are 1 ½  inches long and eventually grow into a small brown moth.  The caterpillars have light colored bodies with tufts of hair all over them.  There are spots of red and blue under the hairs.  Tussock moth caterpillars can eat all the leaves off of a tree very quickly.  Their hairy spines will sting your skin.  If you get stung, take off any clothing over the sting and wash your skin too, to make sure no spines are still in you! 

RESOURCES:

Foster, Steven and Caras, Roger.  Peterson Field Guide to Venomous Animals and Poisonous Plants.  New York:  Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994.

Milne, Lorus and Margery.  National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects & Spiders.  New York:  Alfred A. Knopf, 1995.

Pyle, Robert M.  The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Butterflies.   New York:  Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.

Ready, Tinker.  The News & Observer. “Fuzzy little thing has a nasty sting.” 9/25/96. Http://www.nando.net/newsroom/nao/top/09/25/96/topstory_15692.html. (12/15/97).

“Saddleback Caterpillar,” Http://www.ext.vt.edu/departments/entomology/factsheets/saddle.html.  (12/15/97).

Virginia Cooperative Extension “Puss Caterpillar,”  and “Saddleback Caterpillar.”  Http://www.nando.net.newsroom/nao/top/092596/topstory_15692.html.  (12/15/97)

Provided by the Pelotes Island Nature Preserve
http://pelotes.jea.com