SCORPIONS

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SCORPIONS
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HISTORY

• Oldest known terrestrial arthropods dating back
  430 million years
• Believed to have had an oceanic origin with gills
  and claw like appendage enabling them to climb on
  rocky shores and seaweed
• Scorpions have been found in many fossil records
  including coal deposits

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DESCRIPTION

• Scorpions are eight legged venomous invertebrates
  belonging to the arachnid
• Related to spiders, mites, and ticks
• Long slender body with a five segmented tail that
  can be arched over the back
• The tail ends in a bulb like poison gland or
  stinger

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• Scorpions have two eyes on top of the head
• Two to five pairs of eyes along the front corner
  of the head
• Scorpions dont see well and must rely on their
  pectines for sense of touch to find prey and for
  navigation.
• They have a well developed sense of hearing
• Scorpions range in size from ½ inch to 7 ½ in
  length
• Usually tan with flat bodies that enable them to
  hide in small cracks, under rocks and in bark

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BIOLOGY

• Scorpions are nocturnal hiding during the day and
  becoming active at night
• Some species live 20 -25 years with the average
  life span of 3 to 8 years
• Scorpion mating takes 24- 36 hours
• Gestation is 5 months to 1 year
• Scorpions give birth live with scorpions
  transported on their mothers back

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• Average litter is 13 to 47
• Scorpions fluoresce under an ultraviolet light
• Scorpions have adapted to desert living with
  extra layers of fats on their exoskeleton that
  minimizes water loss.
• Scorpions do drink water but they derive most of
  their water from food
• Scorpions have been known to survive 4 to 5
  months without food
• Scorpions are most active at nighttime
  temperatures are above 70 degrees.
• Less active during winter and the hottest part of
  the summer during daylight hours

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RANGE AND HABITAT

• Thought to be desert animals
• Found also in grasslands and savannahs
• Deciduous forests
• Rain forests, pine forests and caves
• Scorpions even found under snow covered rock over
  12,000 feet in the Himalayas of Asia
• Scorpions often found under rocks, under boards
  and in debris

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• Distinctly associated with dead vegetation,
  falling logs and in human dwellings i.e. my
  house!
• The burrow under rocks and climb trees and walls
  often found in the attics and crawl spaces of
  homes and move into the cooler spaces of homes
  during hot weather, ie bathrooms, kitchens,
  washrooms where water is present

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SCORPION STINGS

• Scorpion stings can be painful and deadly
  depending on the species
• 1500 species worldwide but only 20-25 are
  considered dangerous
• 90 species of scorpions identified in the United
  States and Texas has 18 species, most common
  occurring is the striped bark scorpion
• Stings from poisonous scorpions can cause
  paralysis, convulsions, cardiac irregularities,
  breathing difficulties and death.

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• Antivenom is available where poisonous scorpions
  live, i.e. Arizona, Mexico, New Mexico
• Most dangerous scorpions live in North Africa,
  Middle East, South America, India, and Mexico
• Mortality rates about 4 with children and
  elderly being the most susceptible
• Death by scorpion, if it occurs is the result of
  heart or respiratory failure
• During the 1980s in Mexico there were 800
  scorpion deaths, now none reported due to
  antivenom

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SCORPION VENOM

• The venom is used for both prey capture , defense
  and possibly to subdue mates
• All scorpions do possess venom and can sting but
  their natural tendency is to hide and escape
• Scorpions can control the venom flow so some
  sting incidents are venom less or only mild
  envenomations
• Scorpion venoms are a complex mixture of
  neurotoxins that affect the victims nervous
  system.
• The venom of a bark scorpion may produce severe
  pain, rarely swelling, at the site of the sting

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• Numbness, frothing at the mouth, difficulties in
  breathing including respiratory paralysis, muscle
  twitching and convulsions
• Stings by the Centruroides species in Arizona and
  New Mexico may be fatal. The sing is often very
  painful and gives rise to immediate distress
  including
• Numbness around the wound
• Weakness or even paralysis of the injured part
• Hyperactivity ad anxiety

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• Profuse salivation, dizziness
• Difficulty in speaking and swallowing
• Respiratory distress and in some cases
  convulsions
• Stings by most scorpions are not likely to be
  serious and usually result in localized pain and
  paresthesia, some swelling and tenderness,
  localized ecchymosis and formation of vesicles

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TREATMENT

• Ice immediately
• White vinegar treatment
• Apply a topical or local anesthetic to the wound
  to decrease paresthesia
• Administer local wound care and topical
  antibiotic to the wound
• Administer tetanus prophylaxis
• Administer systemic antibiotics if signs of
  secondary infection occur
• Administer muscle relaxants for severe muscle
  spasms( ie benzodiazepines )
• Keep the extremity lower than heart level

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COMPLICATIONS OF SCORPION BITES

• Dilated cardiomyopathy
• Ankylosis of small joints if the sting occurs at
  the joint
• Rhabdomyolysis
• Persistent paresthesia
• Antivenon anaphylaxis and serum sickness
• Iatrogenic, high does, sedative-hypnotic
  respiratory arrest
• Tachypnea
• Pulmonary edema with hemoptysis and a normal size
  heart is observed in 7-32 of cases
• Respiratory failure cecondary to diaphragm
  paralysis

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Allergic Symptoms

• Utacaria
• Angioedema
• Broncospasm
• Anaphylaxis

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Gastrointestinal signs

• Excessive salivation
• Dysphagia
• Nausea and vomiting
• Gastric hyperdistention

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Genitourinary Signs

• Decreased renal plasma flow
• Acute tubular necrosis
• Rhabdomyloysis renal failure
• Priapism secondary to cholinergic stimulation

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Cranial Nerve signs

• Classic rotary eye movement, ptosis, nystagmus
  and blurred vision
• Mydriasis
• Tongue fasciculations
• Dysphagia,dyarthria, stridor
• Excessive salivation and drooling

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Nonneurologic systemic signs

• Hypertension
• Tachycardia greater than 130 beats per minute
• Transient apical pansystolic murmur consistent
  with papillary muscle damage
• Cardiovascular collapse secondary to profuse loss
  from sweating, vomiting, diarrhea and
  hypersalivation

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PREVENTION OF SCORPION BITES

• Check shoes, gloves, clothing, and backpacks for
  scorpions prior to use
• Keep yards free of debris which can serve as a
  place for scorpions to hide
• Make sure windows and doors fit tightly to
  prevent scorpions from entering house
• Avoid walking barefoot especially at night when
  scorpions are active
• Never thrust hand or kick your foot where the eye
  cannot see
• Brush dont swat anything off your body during
  the night
• Never bring firewood directly into house unless
  it goes right on the fire

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PROGNOSIS

• The prognosis depends on which species of
  scorpion stung the patient
• The symptoms generally persist for 10-48 hours.
  If the victim survives the first few hours
  without severe symptoms the prognosis is usually
  good.
• Worst prognosis can be expected with the presence
  of systemic symptoms such as cardiovascular
  symptoms, seizures, or coma.

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FIRE ANTS a.k.a THE ANTS FROM HELL

• Indigenous to central Brazil has found its way to
  this country through the shipping ports of Mobile
  Alabama and has moved upward through southeast
  United States and Texas
• An estimated one million people are bitten each
  year by fire ants
• Damage by fire ants in rural Texas is estimated
  at 236.5 million a year up to 1 billion
• Damage is caused by loss of crops, wildlife,
  electrical equipment destruction not to mention
  the hazards to humans

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MOUNDS

• Most single queen mounds number up to 100/acre
  with 80,000 to 250,000 individuals per colony
• Typical mounds are rounded being up to 18 high
  and 24 in diameter
• Each has several tunnels just under the soil
  extending out several feet

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THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF EGGS

• unfertilized eggs- become males with wings whose
  only function is to mate with the queen
• fertilized eggs- become females which are either
• Winged virgin queens or various castes of sterile
  workers

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• Fire ants are a member of the mile high club
  mating in the air
• After mating the male dies and the female loses
  her wings and begins searching for a suitable
  nesting site
• A queen can live up to six years and is capable
  of producing her own weight in eggs each day or
  about 1500 or more

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• Developmental time from egg to worker ranges up
  to 38 days
• Minor workers live 60 days, intermediates to 90
  days and majors up to 180 days or longer
• Younger workers are assigned the job of caring
  for the developing brood, middle aged workers
  maintain and protect the colony and the eldest
  forage for food

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HABITS

• Fire ants are typically ground nesting ants
• They also nest in the wood or masonry of
  buildings, near soil or warm places such as
  fireplaces and also near kitchens
• Fire ants are attracted to electrical junction
  boxes of traffic signals, air conditioners.
• When they mass around electrical contact points
  they cause equipment to malfunction.

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• They also nest in gas and water meter boxes and
  follow pipes into buildings
• Fire ants gnaw into the roots, stems, buds and
  fruits of plants such as cabbage, okra, peas and
  seriously injure young trees by removing the
  outer bark from roots or trunks
• They prefer a food high in protein content but
  will feed on almost anything, plant or animal

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• Fire ants have been known to remove insulation
  from phone and electrical wires and to gnaw on
  clothing, especially if soiled
• They are a menace to wild animals and to the eggs
  and young of ground nesting birds and farm animals

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DESCRIPTION

• Fire ants look very much like ordinary house or
  garden ant
• Fire ants are small, coppery brown in color to
  red
• They come in a variety of sizes within one nest
  ranging from 2 mm to 6 mm, a distinguishing
  feature
• Have nests with no obvious entry or exit hole on
  top of them
• They are EXTREMELY AGGRESSIVE , particularly near
  their nest

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ENVENOMATION

• A fire ant has a stinger and a poison sac
• When biting a fire ant first pinches up the skin
  with its mandibles, raising it slightly , this in
  itself causes pain
• The ant then arches its back and inserts its
  stinger, maintaining its position for 20-25
  seconds.
• The ant then uses its head as a pivot and rotates
  and inserts the stinger in 2 and 3 additional
  places causing a clustering of sting sights.
• After two minutes a bright red hemorrhagic
  puncture may be seen at the point where the
  mandibles entered

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• Within several minutes a wheal 4 to 8 mm in
  diameter appears and by that time the stinging
  sensation subsides
• Within 24 hours a pustule 2 to 3 mm in diameter
  appears
• The blisters formed at the site of each sting are
  very itchy while healing and are prone to
  infection if broken
• In 3 to 8 days the purulent material is absorbed
  or sloughed off and leaves a smooth pink are 2 to
  3 mm in diameter persisting for several weeks
• A scar tissue eventually develops

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• The venom of stinging ants is typically
  proteinaceous but the venom of a fire ant is
  found to contain an alkaloid
• The venom is a potent necrotoxin and has
  pronounced hemolytic, phytotoxic, insectididal
  and antibiotic activities
• Some people are sensitive to the venom and
  experience anaphylaxis requiring emergency
  treatment

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ANAPHYLACTIC REACTIONS TO FIRE ANTS INCLUDE

• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Sweating
• Low blood pressure
• Headache
• Shortness of breath
• SHOCK
• COMA, DEATH

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TREATMENT

• ICE
• Solution of half bleach half water can reduce
  pain, itching and pustule formation if applied
  immediately
• Baking soda and water
• An antihistamine or topical corticosteroid may
  reduce the itching
• Aloe vera also helps reduce the itching
• Antibiotics for infection
• Tetnus
• Epi pen
• Benadryl

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MOST AT RISK PATIENTS

• Very young children
• Elderly
• People allergic to the venom

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CONTROLLING FIRE ANTS

• Broadcasting chemicals across the lawn and on the
  mound takes 6-8 weeks
• Phorid flies controls by laying eggs in fire ants
  that grow and decapitates the fire ant
• Armadillos

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BROWN RECLUSE SPIDER

• ONLY ONE OF TWO COMMON SPIDER GROUPS IN THE
  UNITED STATES CONSIDERED POISONOUS
• IDENTIFIED BY LONG THIN LEGS
• OVAL SHAPED ABDOMEN, LIGHT TAN TO DARK BROWN
• CHARACTERISTIC VIOLIN SHAPED MARKING ON ITS BACK
  KNOWN AS FIDDLEBACK SPIDERS
• SHY AND NON AGGRESSIVE IN NATURE

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• BROWN RECLUSE HAVE SIX SETS OF EYES UNLIKE MOST
  SPIDERS THAT HAVE EIGHT EYES
• THE TAIL END HAS NO MARKINGS
• RANGE IN SIZE FROM 3/8 INCH TO ½ IN WITH THE MALE
  SMALLER THAN THE FEMALE
• BROWN RECLUSE BUILD IRREGULAR WEBS THAT
  FREQUENTLY INCLUDE A SHELTER OF DISORDERLY THREADS

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HABITS

• FOUND THROUGHOUT THE SOUTHCENTRAL AND MIDWESTERN
  PART OF THE UNITED STATES
• NOCTURAL COMING OUT ONLY AT NIGHT TO HUNT INSECT
  PREY EITHER ALIVE OR DEAD
• THEY DO NOT EMPLOY A WEB TO CAPTURE FOOD

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• BROWN RECLUSE CAN LIVE UP TO TWO TO FOUR YEARS
• THEY CAN OFTEN SURVIVE MONTHS WITHOUT FOOD OR
  WATER
• A TYPICAL HOME CAN HOUSE ONE TO A FEW SPIDERS TO
  A COUPLE OF HUNDRED SPIDERS
• ALL BROWN RECLUSE, FEMALES, MALES AND BABIES
  CARRY VENOM

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THE BROWN RECLUSE BITE

• THE BROWN RECLUSE IS NOT AGGRESSIVE AND USUALLY
  BITES ONLY WHEN PRESSED AGAINST HUMAN SKIN
• TYPICAL SCENARIOS INCLUDE
• WHEN PEOPLE PUT ON CLOTHING THAT WAS LEFT ON THE
  FLOOR OVERNIGHT
• WHEN PEOPLE BLINDLY PICK UP OR GRAB OBJECTS
  WITHOUT GLOVES IN A SECLUDED OR RARELY VISITED
  AREA
• WHEN PEOPLE ROLL OVER IN BED ON A SPIDER THAT HAS
  CLIMBED UP THE COVERS THAT WERE TOUCHING THE FLOOR

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THE BITES

• BROWN RECLUSE BITES PRODUCE A RANGE OF SYSTEMS
  BOTH CUTANEOUS AND SYSTEMIC
• FIFTY PERCENT OF THE BITES ARE DRY WITH NO VENOM
  INJECTED AND NOTHING HAPPENING TO THE VICTIM
• THESE VICTIMS OFTEN DONT REALIZE THEY HAVE EVEN
  BEEN BITTEN

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SYMPTOMS OF THE VENOMOUS BITE

• THE VICTIM OFTEN DOES NOT FEEL THE BITE
• WHEN THE VENOM IS INJECTED IMMEDIATE REDNESS
  DEVELOPS AROUND THE SITE AND DISAPPEARS WITHIN A
  FEW HOURS
• FOR THE FIRST 24 HOURS THE BITE APPEARS NO WORSE
  THAN A MOSQUITO BITE
• A CLEAR BLISTER FORMS IN THE CENTER OF THE
  BITE,OFTEN BECOMING ITCHY AND PAINFUL
• WITHIN 24 TO 36 HOURS THE BLISTER BREAKS OPEN
  LEAVING AN OPEN , NECROTIC WOUND

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• THE ULCERTION SCABS OVER WITHIN THREE WEEKS FROM
  THE INITIAL BITE LEAVING A PERMANENT SCAR
• IF THE BITE IS DELIVERED IN FATTY TISSUE THE
  LESION MAY BE VERY DEEP AND EXTENSIVE NOT HEALING
  FOR OVER TWO TO THREE YEARS
• IN EXTREME CASES WHERE THE BITE WAS NOT TAKEN
  CARE OF EARLY, SKIN GRAFT AMPUTATION, AND THE
  POSSIBILITY OF BONE MARROW FAILURE MAY OCCUR

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SYSTEMIC REACTIONS

• MORBILLIFORM RASH
• FEVER
• CHILLS
• NAUSEA
• VOMITING
• JOINT PAIN
• HEMOLYSIS
• DISSEMINATED INTRAVASCULAR COAGULTION
• RENAL FAILURE
• SEIZURES
• COMA
• DEATH

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BROWN RECLUSE VENOM

• HEMOLYTIC
• CONTAINS 8 COMPONENTS THAT CAUSE TISSUE
  DESTRUCTION AND HEMOLYSIS

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IS IT A BROWN RECLUSE BITE?

• MRSA OFTEN MISTAKEN FOR A BROWN RECLUSE BITE
• IF THE WOUND IS WEEPING OR MOIST AND RED LOOKING
  IT IS NOT A BROWN RECLUSE
• BROWN RECLUSE VENOM SEALS OFF THE CAPILLARIES AND
  PRODUCE A DRY WOUND
• IF A LUMP OR SWELLING OCCURS THIS IS NOT A BROWN
  RECLUSE

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TREATMENT

• FIRST AID INCLUDES ICE, ALOE VERA, ANTIPURITICS
• IF POSSIBLE CAPTURE THE SPIDER AND BRING IT IN
  FOR ID
• TETNUS
• ANTIBIOTICS
• STEROIDS
• DAPSONE
• ELECTRIC SHOCK
• SURGICAL INCISION

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BLACK WIDOW SPIDERS

• KNOWN AS THE MOST VENOMOUS SPIDER IN NORTH
  AMERICA
• THE BLACK WIDOW EARNS ITS NAME BECAUSE THE
  FEMALE OFTEN EATS THE MALE AFTER MATING, THEREORE
  MAKING HER A WIDOW
• BLACK WIDOW SPIDERS INHABIT MOST OF THE WARMER
  REGIONS OF THE WORLD

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RECOGNIZING A BLACK WIDOW

• THE FEMALE BLACK WIDOW IS SHINY BLACK AND HAS A
  REDDISH HOURGLASS ON THE UNDERSIDE OF HER
  SPHERICAL ABDOMEN
• THE MALES ARE HARMLESS TO HUMANS, HALF THE SIZE
  OF THE FEMALE, WITH YELLOW AND RED BANDS AND
  SPOTS OVER THE BACK

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FACTOIDS

• THE VENOM OF THE BLACK WIDOW SPIDER IS 15 TIMES
  AS TOXIC AS THE VENOM OF THE RATTLESNAKE
• BLACK WIDOW SPIDERS ARE NOT USUALLY DEADLY
  BECAUSE THEY INJECT ONLY A SMALL AMOUNT OF VENOM
• ONLY THE FEMALE IS DANGEROUS TO HUMAN, MALES AND
  JUVENILES ARE HARMLESS
• LIFESPAN IS ABOUT THREE YEARS

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• THE FEMALE BLACK WIDOW HANGS BELLY UPWARD AND
  RARELY LEAVES THE WEB
• THE BLACK WIDOW SPIDER IS SHY AND NOCTURNAL
  USUALLY STAYING IN HER WEB
• SHE BECOMES AGGRESSIVE AND BITES WHEN HER WEB IS
  DISTURBED
• THE FEMALE AVOIDS LIGHT AND SEEKS PREY AT NIGHT

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HABITAT

• BLACK WIDOWS LIVE IN PROTECTED AREAS
• WOODPILES
• UNDER STONES AND DECKS
• HOLLOW TREES
• LOW BRANCHES
• BARNS, SHEDS, OUT HOUSES
• DRY PLACES
• CRAWL SPACES

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THE BLACK WIDOW BITE

• CAN GO UNNOTICED, ALTHOUGH IT OFTEN PRODUCES A
  SHARP IN PRICK PAIN
• THE BITE COMES FROM A SET OF FANGS
• THE SPIDER INJECTS A NEUROTOXIN
• SEVERITY OF AN INDIVIDUALS REACTION DEPENDS ON
• AREA OF BODY BITTEN
• AMOUNT OF VENOM INJECTED
• SENSITIVITY TO VENOM

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• THE BITE MAY GO UNNOTICED BUT MOST REPORT A SHORT
  STABBING PAIN
• THE VENOM TRAVELS IN THE BLOODSTREAM THROUGHOUT
  THE NERVOUS SYSTEM CAUSING VARIOUS DEGREES OF PAIN

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SYMPTOMS

• LOCALIZED SWELLING AND TWO FAINT RED SPOTS AT
  BITE
• AFTER THREE HOURS THE SITE OF THE BITE BECOMES
  MORE PAINFUL
• COMMON REACTIONS INCLUDE AN OVERALL ACHE OF THE
  BODY, PARTICULARLY THE LEGS

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OTHER SYMPTOMS

• ALTERNATING SALIVATION AND DRY MOUTH
• PARALYSIS OF THE DIAPHRAGM
• PROFUSE SWEATING
• SWOLLEN EYES
• HEADACHE
• ELEVATED BLOOD PRESSURE
• NAUSEA AND VOMITING
• ANXIETY

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• THE POISON INJECTED BY THE BITE CAN CAUSE
  ABDOMINAL PAIN SIMILAR TO APPENDICITIS AS WELL AS
  PAIN TO MUSCLES AND SOLES OF THE FEET
• IN MOST CASES SYMPTOMS DISAPPEAR IN TWO OR THREE
  DAYS

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TREATMENT

• CLEAN THE SITE OF THE BITE WELL WITH SOAP AND
  WATER
• APPLY A COOL COMPRESS OVER BITE LOCATION AND KEEP
  AFFECTED LIMB ELEVATED TO ABOUT HEART LEVEL
• CALCIUM GLUCONATE IS USED INTRAVENOUSLY TO
  RELIEVE AND RELAX MUSCLE SPASM PRODUCED BY VENOM

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• CONTACT POISON CONTROL IF YOU ARE BITTEN AND GET
  TO A HOSPITAL
• TRY TO COLLECT THE SPIDER IN A PLASTIC BAG FOR ID
• ANTIVENOM IS USED IN SEVERE CASES BUT THERE IS A
  RISK OF ALLERGIC REACTION
• CHILDREN AND ELDERLY AND THOSE WITH MEDICAL
  PROBLEMS MOST AT RISK MAY BE LIFE THREATENING
• PREGNANT FEMALES MAY GO INTO EARLY LABOR

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PREVENTION

• THIS SPIDER IS RESISTANT TO MANY INSECTICIDES
• THE EGG SACS ARE UNAFFECTED BY INSECTICIDES
• THE FEMALE CAN STORE SPERM AND PRODUCE NEW EGGS
  WITHOUT A MATE
• REMOVE ALL MATERIAL WHERE THEY MIGHT HIDE
• ELIMATE CLUTTER IN STORAGE AREAS

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• FREQUENTLY DUST AND VACUUM ESPECIALLY CORNERS AND
  UNDER FURNITURE TO REMOVE WEBS, SPIDERS, AND EGG
  SACS
• TRIM WEEDS AROUND BUILDING FOUNDATIONS
• DONT GO BAREFOOT
• DONT GARDEN, HANDLE FIREWOOD, STRAW WITHOUT
  GLOVES

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SNAKE BITES

• ABOUT 25 SPECIES OF VENOMOUS SNAKES ARE NATIVE TO
  THE U.S.
• VENOMOUS SNAKES INCLUDE PIT VIPERS
• RATTLESNAKES
• COPPERHEADS
• COTTONMOUTHS
• ALSO INCLUDED ARE CORAL SNAKES

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CHARACTERISTICS OF PIT VIPERS

• LARGE FANGS THAT ARE HOLLOW
• PUPILS ARE VERTICAL SLITS
• TRIANGULAR OR ARROW SHAPED HEAD
• PRESENCE OF A PIT BETWEEN THE EYE AND THE MOUTH
  WHICH IS A HEAT SENSING ORGAN MAKING IT POSSIBLE
  TO STRIKE A WARM BLOODED VICTIM EVEN IF THE SNAKE
  CANT SEE THE VICTIM

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SNAKE FACTOIDS

• ROUGHLY 45,000 SNAKEBITES IN THE U.S. EACH YEAR
• FEWER THAN 8000 BY VENOMOUS SNAKES
• ABOUT SIX PEOPLE DIE
• IN ABOUT 25 OF ALL PIT VIPER BITES, VENOM IS NOT
  INJECTED
• RATTLESNAKES ACCOUNT FOR 70 FOR POISONOUS SNAKE
  BITES AND ALMOST ALL DEATHS
• DEATHS IN CHILDREN AND ELDERLY AN THOSE UNTREATED
  OR TREATED INAPPROPRIATELY

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COPPERHEADS

• SHY AND RECLUSIVE
• COLOR RESEMBLES FALLEN LEAVES AND STICKS
• COPPERHEAD WITH A CHESTNUT COLORED BODY AND DARK
  BROWN BANDS
• YOUNG COPPERHEADS HAVE A LIGHT GREEN TO YELLOW
  TIPPED TAIL TO LURE PREY
• THEY GROW 1 ½ TO 3 FEET IN LENGTH

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COPPERHEAD BITES

• VENOM IS HEMOTOXIC
• SNAKES HAVE FOLDED FANGS
• BITE CAUSES SEVERE PAIN AND ILLNESS BUT IS SELDOM
  FATAL
• SNAKE BITE USUALLY OCCURS ON THE OUTER
  EXTREMITIES, HANDS AND FEET WHERE THERE IS LITTLE
  MUSCLE TISSUE TO ABSORB THE ENVENOMATION

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COTTONMOUTHS

• LARGE AQUATIC VENOMOUS SNAKES
• DARK OLIVE BROWN OR BLACK
• TWO TO SIX FEET IN LENGTH
• FOUND IN WETLAND, RIVERS, LAKES AND MY SWIMMING
  POOL
• WHITE LINED MOUTH
• VERY AGGRESSIVE WITH A STRONGER VENOM MAKING THEM
  MORE DANDEROUS

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RATTLESNAKE

• MOST COMMON TO TEXAS IS THE WESTERN DIAMOND BACK
• DIAMOND SHAPED MARKINGS ALONG THE MIDDLE OF THE
  BACK WITH ALTERNATING BLACK AND WHITE RINGS ON
  THE TAIL
• AVERAGE LENGTH 3 TO 7 FEET
• CLASSIC RATLER ON THE TAIL

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• VENOMOUS BITE FATAL TO HUMANS
• VERY AGGRESSIVE SNAKE
• HIBERNATES IN THE WINTER
• USUALLY MAKES THEIR HOMES NEAR ROCKY LEDGES OR
  SNAKE DENS
• SNAKES ON THE MOVE DURING WARM NIGHTS , THIS IS
  WHEN MOST PEOPLE GET BITTEN

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RATTLESNAKE ROUNDUP
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CORAL SNAKE

• HIGHLY DANGEROUS BUT SECRETIVE
• ENCOUNTERED EARLY MORNING AND EVENING HOURS
• AVERAGE LENGTH 24 TO 47 INCHES
• HEAD IS BLACK AND THE SNAKE HAS RED AND YELLOW
  BANDS THAT TOUCH
• RED AND YELLOW KILL A FELLOW

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CORAL SNAKES

• UNLIKE PIT VIPERS THEY ARE ROUNDED HEAD
• LONG THIN BODIES
• ROUND EYES NOT SLIT LIKE EYES
• NO PITS
• NO FANGS

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CORAL SNAKE BITES

• VENOM IS NEUROTOXIC
• SNAKE HAS NO FANGS SO IT HANGS ON WHILE BITING
  INJECTING AS MUCH VENOM AS POSSIBLE
• HIGH PERCENTAGE OF FATALITIES FROM THE CORAL
  SNAKE BITE

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• THE BITE IS USUALLY NOT PAINFUL
• LITTLE OR NO SWELLING OR DISCOLORATION IS PRESENT
• SYMPTOMS MAY BE DELAYED FOR SEVERAL HOURS BUT
  WHEN THEY DO PROGRESS THEY PROGRESS RAPIDLY

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SYMPTOMS

• NAUSEA
• DROWSINESS
• VOMITING
• MARKED SALIVATION
• DIFFICULTY BREATHING
• PARALYSIS

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EARLY SYMPTOMS OF VENOMOUS SNAKE BITES

• PAIN
• PUNCTURE WOUNDS FROM FANGS
• BLURRED VISION
• BLOOD FROM THE WOUND
• DIZZINESS
• EXCESSIVE SWEATING
• FAINTING

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EARLY SYMPTOMS

• LOSS OF MUSCLE COORDINATION
• SWELLING
• WEAKNESS
• RAPID PULSE
• NAUSEA AND VOMITING

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LONG TERM EFFECTS OF VENOMOUS SNAKE BITES

• LOSS OF LIMB
• DECREASED MOBILITY
• TISSUE DEATH
• NECROSIS AT THE SITE OF INJURY

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HOW DO I AVOID GETTING A SNAKE BITE

• LEAVE SNAKES ALONE!
• STAY OUT OF TALL GRASS UNLESS YOU WEAR THICK
  BOOTS
• REMAIN ON HIKING PATHS
• KEEP HANDS AND FEET OUT OF AREAS YOU CANT SEE
• DONT PICK UP ROCKS OR FIREWOOD UNLESS YOU ARE
  OUT OF A SNAKES STRIKING DISTANCE
• BE CAUTIOUS AND ALERT WHEN CLIMBING ROCKS

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IVE BEEN BITTEN

• SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION IMMEDIATELY
• WASH THE BITE WITH SOAP AND WATER
• KEEP THE BITTEN AREA LOWER THAN THE HEART
• IMMOBILIZE THE BITTEN AREA

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HOW NOT TO TREAT A SNAKE BITE

• DO NOT APPLY ORAL SUCTION TO BITE
• DO NOT CUT OR INCISE BITE MARKS WITH A BLADE
• DO NOT APPLY HOT OR COLD PACKS
• DO NOT APPLY A TOURNIQUET
• DO NOT USE A STUN GUN OR ELECTRIC SHOCK OF ANY
  KIND
• DO NOT WASTE TIME TRYING TO KILL OR BRING IN SNAKE

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TREATMENT

• PRIOR TO 2000 ONLY TREATMENT WAS ANTIVENIM (
  Crotalidae) Polyvalent
• CROFAB INTRODUCED IN 2000
• JANUARY 2001 ANTIVENIM DISCONTINUED

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