jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 8:15:01 GMT -5
By a toe biter. Two days ago.This bug has large hooked front legs and grabs you. Then it drives it's hypodermic needle into you and injects it's digestive juices into you. They are usually about 3 inches long and not attractive. It is behaving like a small dose of snake poison or a spider bite. Swelling and flesh is trying to degrade in a 4 inch circle on front inside of leg between ankle and knee. Hoping for a 2 inch abscess to share w/you. We will see. I know it was this bug because of the single round entry. I know the feel if their itchy injection of foul digestive juice. I was wading thru grass and the grass trapped him against my leg forcing him to bite(hypodermicize). Throbbing sensation all the way into foot. Lower leg is full of fever and swollen. But way better than last night. The poison seems to be moving on. No chance to get a photo but this is what it's hypodermic gut juice injector looks like  Another view of injector thru altered light and an electron microscope  Dinner time  |
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Post by rockpickerforever on Sept 5, 2013 8:52:26 GMT -5
James, you scacrificed your well being for us? How thoughtful of you. No way would I care to be injected by the likes of this!
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 9:03:15 GMT -5
I usually wear waders. i was in a hurry to harvest some water iris and paid a price. It is like giant mosquito. Except instead of taking blood it blesses you with it's own juice.
Good morning Jean. Are you ready for a visit. I should be there by lunch. What ya cooking?
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Post by rockpickerforever on Sept 5, 2013 9:14:47 GMT -5
Good morning, James. I would look forward to a visit from you. Can you get from there to here in five hours? Best jump on your horse and hurry.
What am I cooking? I am cooking!! Something cold, maybe liquid refreshments, even. It was over 100 degrees here yesterday, and they expect it to be 5 to 10 degrees hotter today. I can handle heat to a point, but this is excessive. Especially when it goes on for a week straight. I don't even want to think about my next electric bill, will be over $200, I'm sure.
I hope in additon to the inflammatory nature of the toe-biter bite, that you didn't get some type of bacterial infection. With the swelling, heat and redness, you may have.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2013 9:40:37 GMT -5
predaceous water beetle?
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 9:50:41 GMT -5
This one got me good. The affected area is rock hard like a snake bite from the swelling. When i took my boot off last night you could see the swell line at the top of the boot. Hoping to get a nice abscess. I need a good one. Animal inflicted scars help enticing women.
It would have suited me fine if that critter left his digestive fluids to itself.
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Fossilman
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Post by Fossilman on Sept 5, 2013 10:00:23 GMT -5
Morning James-That will teach ya' to be in a hurry buddy....LOL
Jean,we will be in the high 60's to low 70's here,I'm going to enjoy it too.........
Thats a huge ugly bug Dude!
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 11:12:46 GMT -5
Great for the aquarium. gotta seal the top of the aquarium or they will climb out and fly away. Mostly eat tadpoles. I can shine my spot light in the shallow lily pond with no bass/bluegill and see the
Lethocerus moving away with tadpoles and an occasional minnow in their grip. I think we call them palmetto bugs too. They are eating machines. i think they inject their prey with digestive fluid and that makes it easier to digest. I think spiders do the same thing.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2013 11:19:47 GMT -5
yes, spider venom is to predigest the food. The process also kills the prey. Rattlesnakes too (all vipers...).
I have only seen them in one river here. Probably because the invasive species rainbow trout are in every other waterway. I collected a few hundred for sale overseas!
Jim, could you gather a 1000 of them in a reasonable amount of time? I may have a buyer!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2013 11:25:28 GMT -5
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 11:29:16 GMT -5
They are too infrequent. And muddies the water by the time you catch one. If you could trap them that would be interesting.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2013 11:48:50 GMT -5
hmmm.... trapping.....
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Post by rockpickerforever on Sept 5, 2013 12:06:37 GMT -5
Belostomatidae is a family of insects in the order Hemiptera, known as giant water bugs or colloquially as toe-biters, electric-light bugs and Alligator Ticks or Fleas. Wikipedia I was thinking along the lines of using meat for bait, but according to Wiki, you can trap them with light. One of their common names is even "electric-light bug" because of their propensity to be attracted to light. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BelostomatidaeI remember seeing them in the creek (in San Diego) when I was a kid. The last one I saw was in San Felipe Creek, out by Scissors Crossing (S2 and Hwy 78) near Borrego. Edit to add - They'll give the gambusia a run for their money when it comes to eating frogs.  |
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 12:36:05 GMT -5
It is 1:30 and my leg is well swollen. The average size hear is 2.5 - 3.5 inches. I am glad that you guys are aware of these beasts. And the light thing may be your bait.Lay a blanket net down on the bottom and put a light in the center. Bait bugs fish and Lethocerus Americanus-comeon!
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 12:48:22 GMT -5
I took some pictographs of 2 more water cruisers. I know the cab shaped one prics you. It flys to the tub in 2 hours after filling. How does it know. This one prics. You see the fold out device like the toe biter  Top side  This is the same family i believe. i think it has eggs on its back sometimes. Tried to turn it on it's back to no avail.   |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2013 12:53:55 GMT -5
I think that last one is a nymph of one of the others. A baby so to speak.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2013 13:16:00 GMT -5
It doesn't look like a doctor even crossed your mind. Is there nothing that can be done to stop the ill effects? Maybe I will stay in the north or only go to the southwest desert in winter. Anyone see these in Arizona or New Mexico?
Jim
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jamesp
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Post by jamesp on Sept 5, 2013 13:27:29 GMT -5
I have been bit about 10 times by these Jim. I am loosing a little immunity due to age i guess. This one gave me a bigger reaction. He might have done a bigger injection.
It happened before and all went well. You headed south? To Az or NM ? Wear your waders and ya got nothing to worry about. They go well into Canada. You may have them in Greybull...
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Post by helens on Sept 5, 2013 15:43:03 GMT -5
It's probably too late now, but next time it happens, IMMEDIATELY heat treat the bite (temp over 115 degrees... basically very hot water and soak). From the National Institute of Health: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3257884/Where I first read about it was years ago, and read about the heat lability of lion fish stings. It made me wonder about other types of stings and bites, and MANY insects have heat labile venom, including sea creatures like stingrays and stonefish. Around 20,000 natural toxins are thermolabile. So if you get bit or stung, soak in the hottest water you can stand immediately. In some of these cases, it prevents screaming paralyzing pain completely (unless you are allergic, which is a different story). Scorpion stings are also heat labile, but generally treated with chemicals also: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3058604This is NOT TRUE of snake venom and some spiders!!! If it's still red and painful, try soaking as hot a water as you can stand right now. It's probably spread enough to continue hurting for a bit, but you will know pretty fast if it worked. |
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Post by kk on Sept 5, 2013 16:56:04 GMT -5
And you are still willing to handle them?  Would stay as far as........... |
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