BOOK REVIEWS
WHAT TO DO ABOUT BITES AND STINGS OF VENOMOUS
ANIMALS, by Robert E. Arnold, M.D. 1973. Collier
Books, New York. 122 pp. $1.95.
This is a paperback edition of a hard cover book published by the Macmillan Company. The book is concerned
primarily with venomous species of North America, although certain exotic species are also discussed.
The contents are divided among Overview (introduction) , Insects, Arachnids, Marine Animals, and Reptiles.
There are also 3 appendices, a list of references (52
titles), and an index. The appendices include descriptions of venomous snakes, sources of various kinds of
antivenin, and antivenin centers (with telephone numbers). The last 2 should be especially valuable to physicians concerned with the treatment of venomous bites and
stings. In each section there are descriptions of certain
venomous species, clinical findings, treatment, and often
first-aid measures. Organisms that have been known to
cause deaths in human beings are emphasized, although
routinely nonfatal species such as centipedes and stinging
caterpillars are also discussed briefly.
A table in the introduction tabulates the number of
deaths in the United States from the bites and stings of
venomous animals during the years 1960-1969. These
figures, collected from various state health departments,
list a total of 344 deaths during this period, as a result
of venomous bites and stings. Of this number, 107 are
ascribed to venomous snakes. Hymenopterous insects, including bees, wasps, and yellow jackets, accounted for
123 deaths. Unidentified insects (53 deaths caused)
raised the total mortality to 176 for all insects. Hymenopterous insects accounted for more deaths than any
other group of venomous organisms, a situation documented, to my knowledge, in every recently published
list on the subject.
One death is reported from snake serum (presumably
antivenin), and this should emphasize the fact that some
people are extremely sensitive to the material, which
should be administered only by a physician.
described 70,000 additional species within the past few
years. The author disregards the fact that there are ca.
700,000 known kinds of insects. Again, arachnologists
may be startled to learn that whipscorpions spray their
venom with their tails, and that pseudoscorpions are
likely to be confused with true scorpions (p. 26). According to my latest information, whipseorpions spray their
vinegary-smelling
material from pores at the posterior
end of the body. And I cannot imagine the average person ever seeing a pseudoscorpion, much less confusing
one with a true scorpion. Pseudoscorpions are quite small,
at most a fraction of an inch in length, and they are
very secretive in their habits-a far cry from a 2- to 5-in.
scorpion that may be found wandering about unconcernedly, even in well-built houses.
Information on arachnids states that the scorpion family,
Buthidae, does not have representatives
in the United
States (p. 24), and that ChciracOllthiu11l inclusa11l is the
scientific name of the "common garden spider" (p. 23).
The most common species of scorpions in the United
States belong to the genus C cntmroidcs,
however and.
according
to a recent
puhlication,
this
genus
is included
in the family Buthidae. The common name of hunting or
wandering spider is usually used for C. inclusan (Hentz),
and I suspect that Argiopc ara1ltia Lucas, the black and
yellow garden spider, is more deserving of the name
'common garden spider' than any other species. The bites
of both these spiders have caused the victims to seek
medical assistance, but so far as I know, no fatalities
have been reported.
Entomologists are told that CMorio1l ich1lClll1l01lCa is
a paper wasp that packs a potent sting (p. 6), although
I think most hymenopterists prefer to use the more acceptable generic name Polistcs for the various species
of so-called paper wasps. A brief search of the literature
will reveal that species of Clt/orioll are solitary wasps,
and they are not at all likely to attack a person. Moreover C. icll1lcll111011l'a has had its name changed to
Am1llobia icll1lCllJllO)lCa (L.). This insect digs burrows
in the ground and provisions its nest with crickets or
grasshoppers. There is an implication (p. 12) that the
names 'assassin bugs' and 'wheel bugs' are synonymous.
The name 'wheel bug' should be limited to the species
that is illustrated (p. 12) (Arillls
cristatlls
[L.]), and
blood sucking assassin bugs, such as TriatoJlla sp. should
have been mentioned. Rash, fever, and nausea have been
known to result from the bite of 1 of these insects.
The orientation of this book is directed to discussions
of the medical aspects of venomous bites and stings, e.g.,
symptoms and treatment. Issue may be taken with some
of the statements made, but this need not mean that the
author did not attain his objective of describing the
correct symptoms and prescribing good treatment. Evaluation of the recommended medical procedures should be
done by practicing physicians.
Nothing is said about the classification of centipedes
and millipedes, but most readers would not approve of
these creaturf'S being discussed under the general heading
of "Other Insects"-sandwiched
in between discussions
of ants and venomous caterpillars!
An entomologist (as myself) is on firmer ground in
the discussion of arthropods. The author of this book
finds little agreement in the literature as to recommended
treatment for venomous bites and stings, and he blames
this lack of uniformity on the training of the authors,
many of whom are herpetologists,
veterinarians,
and
"spider men." He also insists that treatment for venomous bites and stings should be given only by practicing
medical men, not by zoologists, biologists and other nonmedics. Except for dire emergency, biologists should
stay in their own field and leave treatment to physicians.
To use an old cliche, however there is another side of
the coin: physicians should also stay in their fieldswhich the author does not do. The results do little to
improve the image of medical doctors as repositories of
all biological information. A few examples of this unfortunate encroachment may be given here.
However, so far as I know, this is the first time a book
of this type has been made available to the general public.
Let us hope that there will be a revised edition with the
most of the "bugs" corrected.
OSMOND P. BIIEr.AND
Department of Zoology
University of Texas
Austin, TX 78712
TYPES OF THYSANOPTERAIN THE COLLECTIONOF THE
CALIFORNIAACADDIY OF SCIENCES, by Paul H. Arnaud, Jr., and Vincent F. Lee. 1973. Occasional Papers
no. 105. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco 94118. 138 p. $1.00.
"Spider men," for one, will hear that spiders are the
most numerous of all animals and that 100,000 species
have been described (p. 16). However, the last approximation I have seen of known species in the whole class
Arachnida (scorpions, ticks, mites, etc., in addition to
spiders) is ca. 30,000. I seriously doubt that the whole
clan of Arachnologists,
working overtime, could have
The type collection of Thysanoptera
housed in the
California Academy of Sciences, which is one of the
major collections in the world and the 2nd largest in the
United States, was catalogued and annootated in detail.
The authors are the curator of the insect collections of
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