Dangerous Insect Bite?

[ryanb741]

Good evening chaps,

Pleased to report that I'm still alive.After writing to you and waiting a bit for a reply my brain suddenly kicked in and I went to the village clinic on the double. Riding the motorbike wasnt easy as my right hand was twitching badly.

Given some yah mong and Atarax.The yah mong was applied locally and the Atarax pills were chased down by kratom leaves munched all morning.I started work at 9am and by 2pm the pain and strange feeling had largely gone.Now(6pm)its 99% normal again.Strange thing there is no obvious bite mark.2 tiny marks about a cigarette end width apart but the pain wasnt centered there just all over 1/2 hand the same.

Thanks for all the replies there.I will be buying a pair of thick gloves before playing in the jungle again.I blame the new UBC programming with that Alan Titmarsh and Charlie Dimock.Thats where the clever idea of making a border came from!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If you have 2 tiny marks you were most likely bitten by a spider

[jaidam]

Good evening chaps,

Pleased to report that I'm still alive.After writing to you and waiting a bit for a reply my brain suddenly kicked in and I went to the village clinic on the double. Riding the motorbike wasnt easy as my right hand was twitching badly.

Given some yah mong and Atarax.The yah mong was applied locally and the Atarax pills were chased down by kratom leaves munched all morning.I started work at 9am and by 2pm the pain and strange feeling had largely gone.Now(6pm)its 99% normal again.Strange thing there is no obvious bite mark.2 tiny marks about a cigarette end width apart but the pain wasnt centered there just all over 1/2 hand the same.

Thanks for all the replies there.I will be buying a pair of thick gloves before playing in the jungle again.I blame the new UBC programming with that Alan Titmarsh and Charlie Dimock.Thats where the clever idea of making a border came from!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If you have 2 tiny marks you were most likely bitten by a spider

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Both marks are insignificant but the right side one even more so.I was working on the assumption that the beast had tried to sting me more than 1 time until bullseye.I hadnt given much thought to spiders-thinking of scorpion or centipede?The local doctor said it was most likely a "toey mun".A type of small, pale coloured scorpion that apparently hides in wood piles.

[RDN]

...You know those huge orb spiders you get in Thailand in the sticks (about 8 inches across with a white and black body and black and bright red legs?). You can't miss them.....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I saw this one - I don't know if it's the type you mentioned - almost exactly a year ago up the "monkey mountain" (Tosae Road) in Phuket City. It was about 20 feet in the air on its web that went across from a tree branch to some power cables on the other side of the road

Edited February 16, 2005 by RDN

[ryanb741]

...You know those huge orb spiders you get in Thailand in the sticks (about 8 inches across with a white and black body and black and bright red legs?). You can't miss them.....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I saw this one - I don't know if it's the type you mentioned - almost exactly a year ago up the "monkey mountain" (Tosae Road) in Phuket City. It was about 20 feet in the air on its web that went across from a tree branch to some power cables on the other side of the road

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well the shots are from a distance but it looks similar to the one in the link I posted. They are actually pretty benevolent - I obviously pissed the one I handled off enough for it to bite (HUGE fangs BTW) but usually Orb Weaver spiders are OK.

BTW - those big black house spiders you get everywhere in Thailand are Huntsmen spiders and contrary to many locals who say they are harmless they most certainly are not - they are fairly aggressive, quick moving and have a painful (not dangerous) bite.

The only invertebrates in LOS that can potentially give a fatal bite (excluding those people with severe allergic reactions) are the jewelled blue centipede (very rare) and the widow spiders (like the Black widows in the US or the redback in Australia - they are basically the same species). I'm sure some of the jellyfish pack a punch but that's not my area of speciality.

But ANY Thai centipede can cause severe pain, as can the red 'fire ants' you get all over the countryside

[RDN]

....can cause severe pain, as can the red 'fire ants' you get all over the countryside

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I also don't like the "mot cun" - little ants that swarm all over your feet and start biting for no reason (well, other than you are standing on their house, I suppose ). Itchy little buggers!

[chuchok]

....can cause severe pain, as can the red 'fire ants' you get all over the countryside

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I also don't like the "mot cun" - little ants that swarm all over your feet and start biting for no reason (well, other than you are standing on their house, I suppose ). Itchy little buggers!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

just wait untill one of the sneaky little buggers runs up your glass and bites you on the lip. The wife thought it was a great joke.Felt like I had a fat lip.

[Phil Conners]

Anyway, as they are an Orb Web species I assumed they would be harmless so I picked one up and let it run across my face to scare my wife. Good fun and all that but when I picked it up off my face to put back on its web it whacked me good with its fangs (drew blood) and the pain was awful. That's one spider not to touch, although the pain went away after an hour or so.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Som nam nah!

[n7zrd]

Just wondering.......did anyone else get itchy, put their feet up and nervously look around the floor while reading this thread???

[RDN]

Just wondering.......did anyone else get itchy, put their feet up and nervously look around the floor while reading this thread???

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Likenitstill]

Here is a great shot of a black house spider. This was at my house in Phuket.

[Thetyim]

Please go away. I hate spiders.

I don't go in Bedlam anymore since George siad there was

a search engine spider in there.

[bkkmadness]

I own an African Starburst Baboon Tarantula - now if that gets ytou you KNOW you've been bitten! Ouch!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I used to have one of those myself, aggresive little b.asatrd. I had a large hairless trapdoor spider as well which made the starburst baboon look like a garden spider in terms of full on scare factor.

[BambinA]

Please go away.    I hate spiders.

I don't go in Bedlam anymore since George siad there was

a search engine spider in there.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Booooooooooo....

Bambi (just kidding you)

[Davey]

Morning folks.

Any suggestions appreciated.Heres the story.

Yesterday 5pm I was carrying some old logs in my garden -SW Thailand- and felt something sting or bite me.The pain was instant and shocking.After 3 hours it was hard to move my hand and now( 14 hours later) my hand is largely numb although still painful but 2 fingers are essentially paralysed.Touching the end of these fingers feels like sticking my finger in an electrical socket.Shooting pain all up my arm and further.

Any ideas on what to do.I have seen a good few scorpions on my land as well as huge centipedes.Ive been bitten by both before and only had pain none of this tingling,numbness and paralysis.

Many thanks,

JD

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I bet it took ages to type this post Seriously though, see a doctor they will obviously be familiar with this, best of luck

[katana]

A couple or so years ago I was in Buriram Town walking past a restaurant when I saw one of these centipedes/millipedes making it's way down the street. The Thai waiters in the restaurant saw it too and jumped out with shrieks of delight and surrounded it and eventually manouvered it with a stick into a 1/2 full bottle of Thai whiskey where it sank to the bottom.

They explained that apparently it's meant to give some sort of special kick/health properties to the whiskey lol.

[Old Croc]

I can't believe you british guys! You have virtually no poisonous insects in your country, but react like idiots when you come across them in thailand! The Orb Spider is one of the most venomous spiders around, but is generally not considered dangerous because it doesn't live in human habitats and basically sticks to its web. But no one in their right mind would let them run across their face! The fact that you can't tell the difference between a millipede and a centipede when living in Thailand is of concern. The centipede the kids had is quite small compared to the 12 inch monsters I've had near my sleeping bag in the north west of Oz.

[wilko]

The picture above is a millipede, harmless.

This is a centipede.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

actually not necessarily so - some millipedes when "rattled" exude a toxin, so beware!

[penzman]

When I said harmless previously, I meant they don't bite.

I remember watching a documentary showing lemurs rubbing the millipede on it's fur, as a pesticide to get rid of parasites. The lemurs were also biting the millipede every 20 minutes or so in order to get high from the same toxins, eyes wide opened, staring for about 20 minutes. Capucin monkeys were also passing a millipede around the group, getting high on tiny bites,making it a social event.

I never handle them with bare hands. I've noticed that my dogs will smell but won't touch them.

[LadyinRed]

Stock some aloe vera at home they work fast and well with insect bites.

[aaaaaa]

Be careful when you reach for the phone....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

actually this is another kind - Millipede , and as I know - not poisonous.

They do not have a poisonous bite, but many protect themselves by offensive odors produced by stink glands; some produce highly irritating compounds that can injure the skin or eyes of attackers; and some can roll up into a ball or spiral for protection...

They feed mostly on decaying vegetation, although some will consume decaying animal food. Some species attack plant roots and cause crop damage....

In contrast, centipedes, with which millipedes are often confused, are carnivorous, have a single pair of legs on each segment, and a body that is flat in cross section.

my g/f was playing with it in front of me, holding it in hands...

Edited December 31, 2005 by aaaaaa

[girlx]

The local doctor said it was most likely a "toey mun".A type of small, pale coloured scorpion that apparently hides in wood piles.

that's what it sounds like to me too, especially when you mentioned the feeling of electric shock. i was stung by one a few weeks ago and it felt the same, pain and shock feeling the first day and then shock feeling and tingling for 3 more days! and still, if i hit my thumb or something i feel that same shock feeling like a nerve has been damaged or something. those are nasty little guys.

i also see those centipedes on a daily basis in koh phangan. one was in my house just yesterday and my thai friend drowned it in bug spray (rather gleefully i might add). a few days before that my dogs were playing with one in the yard- didn't seem to bothered by it but then my dog was run over by a motorbike recently too and was unscathed?!?!

[mraitchison]

protect themselves by offensive odors produced by stink glands

I know people who do that - Fake CK one aftershave to cover up the smell of the alcohol

BAck to bugs

Centipeds - 2 legs per body section

Millipedes have - 4 per body section

I could be wrong but I don't think so.

[Lilyflower]

According to my wife those centipedes can deliver one of the worst stings. It is one of my dreads (that and snakes) as I have always had an allergy to that sort of stuff.

Get yourself down to the A&E dept. of your nearest hospital urgently. Best wishes.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

wondering if you have any advice for me...? anything that bites wants to bite me! i can be sitting with a group of people and no-one gets bitten but me. mozzies seem to particularly like me. everyone (ex-pat) i speak to says that they've got used to it and now they don't react to the bites - but i seem to be getting worse with them. i'm wondering if i'm developing an allergy... any help to avoid getting bitten, or to ease/reduce the reaction when i am bitten would be appreciated!

[chuchok]

According to my wife those centipedes can deliver one of the worst stings. It is one of my dreads (that and snakes) as I have always had an allergy to that sort of stuff.

Get yourself down to the A&E dept. of your nearest hospital urgently. Best wishes.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

wondering if you have any advice for me...? anything that bites wants to bite me! i can be sitting with a group of people and no-one gets bitten but me. mozzies seem to particularly like me. everyone (ex-pat) i speak to says that they've got used to it and now they don't react to the bites - but i seem to be getting worse with them. i'm wondering if i'm developing an allergy... any help to avoid getting bitten, or to ease/reduce the reaction when i am bitten would be appreciated!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

best would be any repallent containing DEET.

If bitten, I find either a cortisone cream or anti-histimine cream works well.

[Lilyflower]

According to my wife those centipedes can deliver one of the worst stings. It is one of my dreads (that and snakes) as I have always had an allergy to that sort of stuff.

Get yourself down to the A&E dept. of your nearest hospital urgently. Best wishes.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

wondering if you have any advice for me...? anything that bites wants to bite me! i can be sitting with a group of people and no-one gets bitten but me. mozzies seem to particularly like me. everyone (ex-pat) i speak to says that they've got used to it and now they don't react to the bites - but i seem to be getting worse with them. i'm wondering if i'm developing an allergy... any help to avoid getting bitten, or to ease/reduce the reaction when i am bitten would be appreciated!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

best would be any repallent containing DEET.

If bitten, I find either a cortisone cream or anti-histimine cream works well.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks Chuchok. I'd rather avoid DEET if I can - but I appreciate that might be best... cortisone and anti-histamine creams don't do much good.

[Head Snake]

wondering if you have any advice for me...? anything that bites wants to bite me! i can be sitting with a group of people and no-one gets bitten but me. mozzies seem to particularly like me. everyone (ex-pat) i speak to says that they've got used to it and now they don't react to the bites - but i seem to be getting worse with them. i'm wondering if i'm developing an allergy... any help to avoid getting bitten, or to ease/reduce the reaction when i am bitten would be appreciated!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Try Coconut juice or Coconut Oil.

I was once on a diet board discussing effects of eating coconut products. One of them was that persons who usually were bitten frequently now were not getting bitten. My friend and I (who both get bitten by mozzies) went golfing and decided to put this to the test. My friend did not think this would work. Before getting to the golf course in Indonesia, we stopped by the side of the road and drink a young coconut and the "skin".

We sweated the coconut out as we played and neither of us once got bitten on the course. We could see the mozzies get close to our skin and then immediately leave once they got close.

[Ollie]

A different take on this:

a man, feeling lonely...

...decides on getting a pet. After a visit to the local pet shop, he chooses a centipede, and brings it home in small white box that is to be the centipede's home.

Later that afternoon, the man fancies a beer. He asks his new friend 'Hey, wanna go down the pub and have a drink with me?'. There is no answer. The man leaves it a couple of minutes, then asks again, this time a little louder. 'Hey buddy, how about going out for a beer?'. Again, there is no answer. The man waits another couple of minutes, pondering, before putting his mouth closer to the box and shouting 'Hey!! How about a beer?!'.

After a couple of seconds, a little voice comes out of the box. 'I heard you the first time! I'm putting my bloody shoes on!'

Happy new year!

[mraitchison]

I think I am going to have to report that last post and ask them to ban you for that joke.

Happy New Year

[ThaiPauly]

My freind is over from the UK at the moment and she has this small machine (bout the size of a mobile/cell phone) which she clips to her waistband or just leaves on the table. If you put it up close to your ear you can hear this high pitched sound which is basically the recorded sound of a male mozzie saying he does not want to be bothered my any females (its the bitches that bite) Anyway, she has not been bitten ONCE in 2 weeks , nor has anyone that manages to get close enough to be protected by its range (8 metres). If you do go out of range and get bitten- then she also has this zapper, which zaps the bite and renders it numb and you dont get any pain/irritation.

All this gear is fabulous. I have already given her the money to send me out a few when she gets back to the UK. She has already sold the one she has (within minutesof arriving) so come next week they will be a "Protected White Species"

Don't know if anyone else has come accross these wonderful inventions?