Physicians at the University of Arkansas Medical Center, Little Rock,
prefer the prompt administration of corticosteroids, stating, “Large
doses given early may completely prevent the gangrenous response as well
as the systemic reaction. The dosage schedule which we have found most
effective is: 80 mg. of methylprednisolone (Deep-Medrol) intramuscularly
immediately followed by one or two additional doses of same amount at
24-48 hour intervals. Subsequently, step wise decrease to 40, 20, 10
mg., every 24-48 hours, depending on the patient’s response, is carried
out.”
Dr. Herbert L Stahnke, Director of the Arizona Poisonous Animals
Research Laboratory, reports that an antivenin has been prepared in
South America to control both the local and general symptoms from the
bite of a closely related species of _Loxosceles_. He states, “locally
there seems to be a favorable response to hydroxyzine, 100 mg. four
times a day. I would say that cryotherapy, as we recommend it, would
prevent all symptoms. I would recommend that the site of the bite be
packed in crushed ice for 6 to 8 hours, after which the patient should
be kept warm to the point of perspiration with the ice pack continuing
for a total of 24 hours. In other words, treated like a pit viper bite,
but over a much shorter period of time.” Avoid narcotics (morphine,
demerol, dilaudid, codeine, etc.) since they enhance the systemic
effects.
Although the brown recluse has not yet been reported in Arizona, it may
be expected at any time, according to Dr. Mont A. Cazier, professor of
zoology at Arizona State University at Tempe. In the meantime, studies
are being made of the several close relatives of _Loxosceles reclusa_
known to be present in the state. Among these is _L. unicolor_, first
collected near Littlefield and Virgin Narrows in 1932. Equally poisonous
with _reclusa_ is the similar _L. laeta_, also found in Arizona. Other
members of the genus, _L. deserta_ and _L. arizonica_, have been known
to live in Arizona and elsewhere in the Southwest for more than three
decades, but no studies have been made of their venom. Dr. Willis J.
Gertsch, world famous authority on spiders, believes that there may be
as many as 20 species of _Loxosceles_ in the Southwest. Several reports
by persons who have been bitten by spiders describe reactions similar to
those caused by the bite of the brown recluse.
According to Dr. Findley E. Russell, toxicology researcher of the
University of Southern California Medical School, the “venom” injected
by the brown spider is not really a toxin but a complete chemical that
inhibits the normal action of infection-fighting antibodies in the human
anatomy.
Tarantulas
(_Avicularia_ sp.)
Known to naturalists as bird spiders, the large hairy members of the
genera _Avicularia_, _Dugesiella_, and _Aphonopelma_ of the arid
Southwest are commonly called tarantulas.
[Illustration: _Tarantula_
(Photo by Marvin H. Frost Sr.)]
This name originated in southern Italy where, centuries ago, according
to a story, in the little town of Tarantum (now Taranto) there developed
an epidemic of “tarentism” supposedly resulting from the bite of a large
wolf spider (_Lycosa tarantula_). Victims were affected with melancholy,
stupor, and an irresistible desire to dance. Presumably, the Neapolitan
folk dance, Tarentella, came about as a result of an effort to develop a
cure for tarentism.
Early day immigrants brought to the western hemisphere both the
unreasoning fear of spider bites and the name “tarantula,” which they
applied to the large and fearsome-looking bird spider of the Southwest.
Since that time this superstitious fear has become established among the
uneducated and uninformed people of the southwestern United States,
where the bird spiders are numerous.
It has been spread and aggravated by prolific writers of western
thrillers, published in the pulp-paper magazines. Fantastic tales in
which the big spiders followed their victims, sprang upon them from
distances of from 6 to 10 feet, and inflicted painful bites resulting in
lingering, agonizing death have had wide circulation and have found a
credulous audience.
Tarantulas are nearsighted, and their habit of pouncing upon
grasshoppers and other large insects on which they prey is probably the
basis for exaggerated stories of their jumping abilities. Their strong,
sharp fangs can inflict a painful bite, but they use them only rarely in
defense against human molestation. Stahnke states that any effects
produced appear to be the result of bacterial infection rather than that
of poison, although a mild poison is present. Treatment of tarantula
bite with iodine or similar antiseptic is recommended.
One species of _Avicularia_ and several of _Aphonopelma_ range
throughout the Southwest where they are active during spring, summer,
and autumn months. They live in web-lined holes in the ground, usually
located on south-facing slopes. The males are commonly encountered
traveling across country, and are particularly noticeable as they cross
a highway.
Preying upon insects, these large and interesting desert dwellers are
beneficial rather than harmful to mankind, and deserve protection.
Unfortunately, many become the innocent victims of the wholly
unwarranted fear in which they are held because of the fantastic stories
regarding their purported poisonous characteristics.
Conenose bug
(Kissing bug, Bellows bug, Walpai tiger, Cross bug, others)
(_Triatoma_ sp.)
Although not limited to the deserts of the Southwest, conenose bugs, of
which there are several species, are commonly associated with
subtropical climates.
Certain South American species of the family _Reduviidae_ are disease
carrying and there is evidence the conenoses in San Diego County,
California, are infected with a disease-producing flagellate. Lack of
large bug populations in close contact with man and ineffective
transmission habits protect man in the Southwest from disease contacts.
However, the site of the bug’s bite becomes inflamed, and swelling may
spread over an area up to a foot in diameter.
In general appearance, conenose bugs resemble assassin and squash bugs,
with protruding eyes at the base of a cone-shaped snout and are about
the same size. Some species are considerably smaller, while others
attain a length of an inch or more.