22 
Poisonous Arthropods 
flow of blood and lymph from that region. The wound is then 
freely excised and treated with a strong solution of permanganate 
of potash, or with lead and opium lotion. 
In recent years there have been many attempts to prepare an 
antivenom, or antiserum comparable to what has been used so 
effectively in the case of snake bites. The most promising of these 
is that of Todd (1909), produced by the immunization of suitable 
animals. This antivenom proved capable of neutralizing the venom 
when mixed in vitro and also acts both prophylaeticallv and cura- 
tively in animals. Employed eurativelv in man, it appears to have 
a very marked effect on the intense pain following the sting, and 
the evidence so far indicates that its prompt use greatly reduces 
the chance of fatal results. 
THE SOLPUGIDA, OR SOLPUGLDS 
The Solpugida are peculiar spider-like forms which are distin¬ 
guished from nearh r all other 
arachnids by the fact that 
they possess no true cephalo- 
thorax, the last two leg-bear¬ 
ing segments being distinct, 
resembling those of the abdo¬ 
men in this respect. The 
first pair of legs is not used 
in locomotion but seemingly 
functions as a second pair of 
pedipalpi. Figure 12 illus¬ 
trates the striking peculiari¬ 
ties of the group. They are 
primarily desert forms and 
occur in the warm zones of 
all countries. Of the two 
hundred or more species, 
Comstock lists twelve as 
occurring in our fauna. 
These occur primarily in the 
southwest. 
The Solpugida have long 
borne a bad reputation and regarding virulence, have been classed 
with the scorpions. Among fthe effects of their bites have been 
12 . A solpugid (Eremobates cinerea). After Com¬ 
stock. 
