Here's a pic of the little bugger
Posted on 07/04/2015 7:24:05 PM PDT by aMorePerfectUnion
SAN ANTONIO - Along with the high number of sightings of roaches and snakes as a result of the rainfall this spring and summer, the Texas cherry headed centipede is also coming out of hiding, creating a bit of an Internet sensation.
One boy pulled one from his ear, the subject of viral photos and new stories. At Garner State Park, another giant centipede was found at the park headquarters and circulated on Facebook. Now more people are noticing the arthropods, which are coming out to hunt other pests like mice, rats and roaches.
Jacob Galvan is an expert of insects and other critters at the San Antonio Zoo’s Education Center.
“The rain has made a big difference. The saturation has made it right for a lot of things to come up, like tadpoles, centipedes, roaches," he said.
But unlike many bugs, centipedes are dangerous to touch because they almost always will pierce your skin with their sharp mandibles and inject a nasty venom.
Karen Macias also works in the zoo’s Education Center and said she tries to explain to children out exploring to never touch a centipede.
“Every person has a different reaction to the venom of a centipede, so you never know how your body is going to react. I would call your doctor right away," she warned.
Symptoms of a bite or sting include severe pain, swelling, redness, headache, nausea, anxiety and racing heart palpitations.
They tend to burrow underground and under rocks where other critters will come for water, like swimming pools and lakes. Zoo experts say removing one from your home is tricky, since you cannot touch it and they are very fast, so you may want to cal an exterminator if you spot one.
For more information on centipede bites, click here.
.22 rat shot works great!
OK, you’re added!
Ugh, I looked that movie up... I shouldn’t have. Uuugh. Uuuuugh.
Holy cripes I’m going to need to carry a machete when I visit Austin in August!
When I was a kid, I saw one of those bad boys not too far outside of El Paso.
My grandpa told me not to mess with it because it could bite. He didn’t have to tell me twice.
Centipedes over 3.5” Long Ping List??
I thoght you were joking.
But the ping list I was looking for was
“Another reason to wear hearing aids” list.
“If a centipede a pint, and a milipede a quart, how much would a precipice?”
An old play on words my deceased aunt used to say.
We find an assortment of broken off legs and debris. So far, all seem to be juvenile bastards. I suspect the cats know to stay clear of the big ones and let daddy take care of them.
Mexicans, too. Quite an infestation.
Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?
Or, you might just spray them with bug spray. It's about ten minutes from hitting the spray to a hundred legs up (it's actually only 40 legs).
““If a centipede a pint, and a milipede a quart, how much would a precipice?”’
Red! Red is the correct answer!
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