Poisonous Animals of the Desert 



B\ Charles T. Vorliics 



INTRODUCTION 



The arid and semi-arid southwestern area of the United States, 

 with its warm climate, is the habitat of a considerable number of 

 animal species which are more or less objects of dread for the 

 average person. Some of these are justly feared, but man}' are not 

 nearly so dangerous as popular story and belief would have them, 

 while still others are quite harmless. A considerable part of Ari- 

 zona's fauna is native to more tropical Mexico, but it also has 

 many species of a somewhat wider distribution from north and east, 

 and this commingling of faunas gives it perhaps as large a variety 

 of these undesirables as any state in the Union. In addition, there 

 seems to be an unusual amount of baseless prejudice and supersti- 

 tion concerning many totally harmless forms, due possibly to the 

 large element of Mexican population. Certain superstitions, for 

 example, concerning the "campamocha" are traceable to this source. 



The purpose of this bulletin is to olTer authentic information 

 regarding a number of these more or less poisonous species and 

 their relative degrees of "frightfulness," and to make it possible for 

 the reader' to distinguish between fact and fable ; to enable him to 

 keep cool when in no real danger ; and even to enable him to dis- 

 tinguish the "business end" of some of these, for there exists great 

 confusion as to whether a given form bites or stings. More than 

 one intelligent person does not distinguish between the head and 

 the tail ends of a common centipede. 



While it would serve no useful purpose to give a full list of 

 original papers on the animals with which this bulletin is con- 

 cerned, we wish to give credit and reference to a few recent au- 

 thoritative texts which have been freely consulted and used.* 

 These works will hereinafter be referred to simply by use of the 

 names of the authors. 



1. Tlie Spider Book, by .J. H. Comstock. Doubleday, Page & Co. 



2. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, by W. B. Hemis. The MacMillan 



Company. 



3. Handbook of Medical Entomology, by Riley and Johann.sen. Comstock 



Publishing Company. 



4. The Reptile Book, by R. L. Dilmars. Doubleday, Page & Co. 



