CHAPTER II. 



ARTHROPODS WHICH ARE DIRECTLY POISONOUS 



Of all the myriads of insects and related forms, a very few are of 

 direct use to man, some few others have forced his approbation on 

 account of their wonderful beauty, but the great hordes of them are 

 loathed or regarded as directly dangerous. As a matter of fact, only 

 a very small number are in the slightest degree poisonous to man or 

 to the higher animals. The result is that entomologists and lovers 

 of nature, intent upon dissipating the foolish dread of insects, are 

 sometimes inclined to go to the extreme of discrediting all statements 

 of serious injury from the bites or stings of any species. 



Nevertheless, it must not be overlooked that poisonous forms do 

 exist, and they must receive attention in a consideration of the ways 

 in which arthropods may affect the health of man. Moreover, it 

 must be recognized that "what is one man's meat, is another man's 

 poison," and that in considering the possibilities of injury we must not 

 ignore individual idiosyncrasies. Just as certain individuals may be 

 poisoned by what, for others are common articles of food, so some 

 persons may be abnormally susceptible to insect poison. Thus, the 

 poison of a bee sting may be of varying severity, but there are individ- 

 uals who are made seriously sick by a single sting, regardless of the 

 point of entry. Some individuals scarcely notice a mosquito bite, 

 others find it very painful, and so illustrations of this difference in 

 individuals might be multiplied. 



In considering the poisonous arthropods, we shall take them up by 

 groups. The reader who is unacquainted with the systematic rela- 

 tionship of insects and their allies is referred to Chapter XII. No 

 attempt will be made to make the lists under the various headings 

 exhaustive, but typical forms will be discussed. 



ARANEIDA OR SPIDERS 



Of all the arthropods there are none which are more universally 

 feared than are the spiders. It is commonly supposed that the 

 majority, if not all the species are poisonous and that they are aggres- 

 sive enemies of man and the higher animals, as well as of lower forms. 



That they really secrete a poison may be readily inferred from the 

 effect of their bite upon insects and other small forms. Moreover, 



