What Is It?

[track61]

We killed an awful looking creature in the driveway last night. The dog was playing with it and when my wife and her aunt saw it they went ballistic. As best I can tell they were calling it a "TAKOB". It was about 8 inches long, had I'm not sure how many legs but each one had a barb on the end. My wife says it is more dangerous than a scorpion by about 100 times. I don't know how lethal it is to the average person but you can tell by looking at it an up close and personal meeting would not be pleasant. I have never seen one before, and I have spent time in several jungles. Anyone here know what this thing is??????

[PhilHarries]

Any chance of a more objective description? Was it an insect, reptile or mammal? What was it’s colouring?

Did your wife mean tokay or similar local term?

If it was a tokay, like a large jinjok, they can give a nasty bite but are not considered dangerous per se.

[PhilHarries]

Any chance of a more objective description? Was it an insect, reptile or mammal? What was it’s colouring?

Did your wife mean tokay or similar local term?

If it was a tokay, like a large jinjok, they can give a nasty bite but are not considered dangerous per se.

[Thaddeus]

From the "I'm not sure how many legs" remark, I would assume that means quite a few more than several.

If the body was rounded and blackish, that will be a millipede, totally harmless.

If the body was flat and reddish, that will be a centipede, very harmul, can put you in hospital for a few days.

[Totster]

Did it look like this ?

If so it's called "dtakaab" (ตะขาบ), and it is very nasty, and is guarenteed to send anyone who knows it into frenzy of flip flop/shoe battering

totster

[toptuan]

Yes, the Thai word "Takob" refers to a very harmful centipede. There is another thread with pictures on ThaiVisa about this here. Shows a picture of the harmless millipede and the to-be-avoided centipede.

The centipede's (takob) bite isn't lethal, but the pain will make you wish you were dead.

While sleeping, a friend of mine was bitten on the neck. He lived alone, and could not move from his sleeping pad for three days because of the intense pain. After which, he crawled across the street to the village clinic for help. The bites can easily get infected, so getting medical attention is wise.

Edited November 5, 2007 by toptuan

[Gimbo]

If you find one of them crawling on your body, do NOT even try to brush it off. It will sink those legs into your skin. And when you brush it off the legs will remain. Extremely painfull, guarranteed is also a nasty infection, and becouse of the barbed/hook like legs they have to be cut out. Thats on top of the mindblowing pain from the bite.

We had a lot of those critters in the Lebanon. We used to say that if you get one on you, take your pistol, aim carefully and blow its head off. If you can't bring yourself to do this, find a friend you really trust and ask him to do the job. :D

[track61]

Did it look like this ?

If so it's called "dtakaab" (ตะขาบ), and it is very nasty, and is guarenteed to send anyone who knows it into frenzy of flip flop/shoe battering

totster

That's it and my gang didn't resort to flip flops. I just cut down and cut up a kaffir lime tree and they got pretty large sticks and got to some serious bashing.

Thanks to all for the info, I didn't need to be told to avoid the thing but good to know more about it. Just wonder if they run in pairs and there is another one somewhere in my yard.

[Thaddeus]

Just wonder if they run in pairs and there is another one somewhere in my yard.

I moved one of the concrete chairs out back the other day and three of them shot out.

If you don't want to get too close to them, the Baygon insect spray will take them out, spraying it around your doors occasionally will keep them away.

[macb]

TAKOB agreed and very fast little or long Critters :

One of my labourers was bitten by one and he rushed down to the wifes father who did a spitting ceremony the remove whatever the spit removes, then he came back to work :

As soon as he was bitten I washed his finger with dettol solution and put a plaster on but this was not good enough he had to be spat on the finger mmmmmmmm

[Totster]

As soon as he was bitten I washed his finger with dettol solution and put a plaster on but this was not good enough he had to be spat on the finger mmmmmmmm

Maybe the Lao Kao content disinfected it ...

totster

[lungbing]

Here's a bit better picture of one we killed in our garden last year.

There's a ruler at the side for comparison.

Nasty little buggers. My wife killed it without it bothering

her Buddhist sensabilities.

[chonabot]

Yes , 'Da Kaap' is not welcome in many Thai households, unfortunately it tends to visit them regardless.

I used to keep a few of these [scolopendra Subspinipes] in my invert collection , they are fascinating little killing machines , a mouse or lizard would stand no chance.

If you get bitten by one , take some antihistamines and painkillers immediately , then go to the doctor/hospital.

Edited November 5, 2007 by chonabot

[mailman]

Here's a bit better picture of one we killed in our garden last year.

There's a ruler at the side for comparison.

Nasty little buggers. My wife killed it without it bothering

her Buddhist sensabilities.

That is a big, fat, juicy looking one, yum yum! I've heard all sorts of stories about centipedes. Where I live,

they say even the small ones can pack a bigger whallop then the big ones and if the color is bright, they are more

poisonous. Not sure if that is true, but not going to run a test to find out either. Appears that I need to buy some of that spray to keep them at bay.

[cobra]

If you find one of them crawling on your body, do NOT even try to brush it off. It will sink those legs into your skin. And when you brush it off the legs will remain. Extremely painfull, guarranteed is also a nasty infection, becouse of the barbed/hook like legs they have to be cut out. Thats on top of the mindblowing pain from the bite.

That's going to be a tough call, maybe a Navy Seal or James Bond could let one crawl around on them and not immediately try to knock it off,

They're also fond of emerging out of urinals and sinks, I remember it took quit a while to flush the guy back down and he it seemed highly pissed, think it was Samui or Chang, beach bungalow, didn't get any quality sleep that night knowing it probably was going to emerg again sometime during the night only a few feet away and still pissed ...

[sutnyod]

Another antidote for their bites:

take a 'Khan Kap' (some say Khan Kahk), that's a kind of toad, and rub it with a stick until it emits a kind of slime from its skin. Take that slime and apply it on the bite. Have not tried it myself, but seen it being used.

[sriracha john]

Yes , 'Da Kaap' is not welcome in many Thai households, unfortunately it tends to visit them regardless.

I used to keep a few of these [scolopendra Subspinipes] in my invert collection , they are fascinating little killing machines , a mouse or lizard would stand no chance.

If you get bitten by one , take some antihistamines and painkillers immediately , then go to the doctor/hospital.

While visiting my Swedish friend in Roi-Et, he held an interesting "Battle to the Death" between one of these and a toad enclosed in a big wash basin and covered with a sheet of glass. I thought for sure the toad would lose, but after the centipede scurried over top of him once, the toad began emitting a white, milky substance through the skin on his back and when the centipede next ran over him and went through this, he began to slow down and eventually died. The toad WON!

[Bicko]

Here's a bit better picture of one we killed in our garden last year.

There's a ruler at the side for comparison.

Nasty little buggers. My wife killed it without it bothering

her Buddhist sensabilities.

Here is an interesting bit of info that may help someone. I am currently working in Aceh on tsunami reconstruction and often see big centipedes in the villages. I showed this photo to my senior Engineer and he said "yes very dangerous but if you put the centipede in a bottle of green coconut oil and leave it for a month the oil is then very very effective to neutralise the pain and effects of a centipede bite." Local superstition, old woman's story or maybe true but it might work!!!

I was home in my village in Buri Ram a couple of weeks ago and we found these huge scorpions in the garden. They were black, about 8cms (3 Inches) long and we found 3 of them over a period of a week. Nasty looking brutes. Wouldn't like to get a hit from one of them.

[Thaddeus]

the toad began emitting a white, milky substance through the skin on his back

Under no circumstance lick a toad here, that may sound like odd advice, but magic-mushroom fans have been known to progress that far...... Isaan toad potency is very strong.

[Thaddeus]

I was home in my village in Buri Ram a couple of weeks ago and we found these huge scorpions in the garden. They were black, about 8cms (3 Inches) long and we found 3 of them over a period of a week. Nasty looking brutes. Wouldn't like to get a hit from one of them.

The scorpion sting is mild in comparison to the centipede. Unless you have an allergic reaction and go into anaphylactic shock it isn't that much worse than a bee sting, as long as they don't gang up on you.

I have always been told that the size of the claws is quite important, big claws means two methods of kill, sting is not that bad to a large creature, small claws, much more painful, but still not life threatening.

[sriracha john]

the toad began emitting a white, milky substance through the skin on his back

Under no circumstance lick a toad here, that may sound like odd advice, but magic-mushroom fans have been known to progress that far...... Isaan toad potency is very strong.

Actually, it's just toxic.

From what I've read, the only toad with psychoactive-containing excretions is the Colorado River toad (Bufo alvarius) found in southwestern USA.

[soundman]

Its called a "dtakarp". Highly poisonous. Will give you grey hairs overnight if you are un-lucky enough to get stung by one.

Try catching one, mincing it up & putting the paste inside a bottle of lao khao. Hallucinegenic, "I am the master of my universe" feeling after drinking the concotion - so my staff tell me! Too gutless to try it myself....

[soundman]

the toad began emitting a white, milky substance through the skin on his back

Under no circumstance lick a toad here, that may sound like odd advice, but magic-mushroom fans have been known to progress that far...... Isaan toad potency is very strong.

I accidently coated a toad with concentrated caustic soda last year. The result was spectacular! Little critter was actually smoking as the poison glands on its neck went into hyperdrive.

[bergen]

Thanks to all for the info, I didn't need to be told to avoid the thing but good to know more about it. Just wonder if they run in pairs and there is another one somewhere in my yard.

They always run in pairs, and if the one you found was big, there might be a couple of small ones as well

[Gary A]

Centipedes are nasty critters. This from Pattaya City News;

On Wednesday Night, Rescue Workers received an urgent call to attend to a Thai Man, Khun Mongkong aged 31, who had become seriously ill after sustaining a bite from a large Centipede. The man was walking around the back of his house and was wearing only sandals. It was dark and he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his right ankle and realized he had been bitten. He soon lost consciousness and his breathing became shallow. He was rushed to the Queen Sirigit Hospital and we can report he was given drugs to counteract the affects of the bite and he is now expected to fully recover from the ordeal.

[BlackArtemis]

I used to have one for a pet (yeah I'm one of those people), basically it can kill if a living thing weighs under 25kilo or if you are allergic to venom. They are EXTREMELY pissy and have no qualms about biting you multiple times in rapid succession. Their last two legs are much longer and even when approached from behind they will grapple you with them and swim up (hanging stomach crunch style) and nail ya. Their bite will feeling like 15-24hrs of intense burning fire, which can cause vomiting etc. I was never bitten, but I have read and listened to too many accounts. They will eat mice and I never found bones when cleaning the cage.. Mine was a mother too, 100+ babies and there are a very good mother too...

Cliffnotes: BAD VERY BAD KILL KILL KILL BURNS LIKE FIRE!

P.s. a centipede is an arthropod and they're not poisonous, they're venomous.