Poisonous Animals of Tuii Di'SKk'j- 



391 



One hears many statements as to the poisonous character of 

 all the claws of the centipede. These vary from the supposition that 

 a centipede merely walking undisturbed across the skin leaves an 

 inflamed trail, to the story that one cannot be removed from the 

 skin, however suddenly (even by shooting it away with a six- 

 shooter!), without its sinking every claw into the flesh and leaving 

 a line of severe wounds ; even so severe that sloughing of aft'ected 

 flesh follows. There are certainly no poison glands in any other 

 than the specialized front feet. Yet the claws are sharp-pointed, 

 and a reputable physician assures me that he has seen an inflamed 



path across the skin, but this in case 

 where the animal has been grasj^ed and 

 irritated in contact with the skin, as 

 when within the clothing. Even in this 

 case the physician admitted the possi- 

 bility of several bites in succession hav- 

 ing been received. On the other hand, 

 the writer admits the possibility that 

 the claw points might produce irrita- 

 tion comparable to so many pin pricks 

 if the animal were caused to cling 

 tightly to the body. Local physicians 

 agree with the writer that centipede in- 

 jurv is only to be classed with the sting 

 of the scorpion in severity, and both 

 of these with bee and wasy) stings. 



A non-poisonous, perfectly harmless 

 animal which causes needless fear is 

 t h e millipede o r "thousand-legged 

 worm." (Fig. 12). It is also called 

 wiroworm on account of its smooth, 

 hard Ixulv covering, but should not be 

 confused with the wireworm, which is 

 a type of small, smooth, hard, almost legless insect larvae, none so 

 large as the millipedes. Millipedes are of a group related to the 

 centipedes in structure, but differing in habits and in certain easily 

 recognizable characters. Centipedes are flat bodied and each seg- 

 ment or "joint" of the body bears one pair of legs. Millipedes are 

 cylindrical bodied, and each a])parent segment bears ti^'o pairs of legs 

 They feed only .m vegetable material, hence have no poison appa- 

 ratus, and their mouth parts are too small and weak to inflict even 



Fig. 12.— Miluriede-s. One-half 

 life size. Harmless. 



