Things That Bite: Gulf States Edition: A Realistic Look at Critters That Scare People

by Tom Anderson

Overview

Be Aware, Not Afraid

Spiders, snakes, sharks and gators - they're out there, but there's no reason to fear them. Things That Bite takes a matter-of-fact look at more than 30 creatures found in the states that border the Gulf of Mexico. Detailed information includes fascinating facts, environmental benefits of each species, discussion of why some might bite, bite prevention and myths about each creature.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781591932444
Publisher:	Adventure Publications, Incorporated
Publication date:	08/27/2010
Series:	Things That Bite
Pages:	182
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Tom Anderson is a professional naturalist, an award-winning writer and a wildlife expert. For sixteen years he was director of the Lee and Rose Warner Nature Center, which is associated with the Science Museum of Minnesota and is located in Marine on St. Croix, Minnesota. In addition to his work at the nature center, Tom is a well-known writer and columnist. For nearly 15 years he wrote “Reading Sign,” an award-winning column for the Chisago County Press. He is also the author of two books, Learning Nature by a Country Road and Black Bear: Seasons in the Wild, both from Voyageur Press. He is a published poet and was a columnist for Midwest Fly Fishing Magazine and the Science Museum of Minnesota periodical Encounters. Tom has been honored many times for his writing. He was one of 20 Minnesota artists chosen to participate in the Millennium Journal Project. In 2003 he was awarded the “Best Commentary Award” by The National Association of Interpretation’s periodical, The Legacy. In 2004 he was runner-up for the “Best Feature” category. The natural world and our intimate connection to it inspires Tom to write. He lives southwest of North Branch, but he travels often, especially in the far North. He lives with his lovely wife Nancy Conger in the nineteenth century farmhouse his Swedish great-great grandparents built.

Read an Excerpt

Chiggers

Nels, one of my best friends, was camping in southern Texas near the Rio Grande. Since he was Minnesotan, everything about the area was new and exciting, especially the native wildlife. While hiking, Nels overheard a flock of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks. He crawled through sand and thick buffelgrass to sneak closer for a better look. After watching the birds for a while, he retreated, excited about the sighting. That night, he felt a burning sensation around his ankles. As it turns out, Nels had encountered more than a few ducks; he’d also met another resident species of the Gulf Coast—chiggers. By morning he had bites from his toes to his waist. For a few days his nightly scratching only seemed to make the itching worse. The chiggers made sure that Nels would never forget that outing!

About Chiggers

Like ticks and spiders, chiggers are arachnids, not insects. Chiggers start out very small; their larvae are only 1⁄150 of an inch in diameter, and it’s actually these tiny larvae that cause us discomfort. As chiggers develop, they grow larger and their diet changes. As nymphs and adults, chiggers no longer feed upon us; instead, they prey upon insect eggs and small invertebrates in the soil. Chiggers are found throughout the Gulf Coast region and are sometimes called mites or red bugs because adults are covered in dense red hairs.

Life and Times . . .

Like other arachnids, chiggers go through four life stages: egg, larva, nymph and adult. The complete life cycle takes roughly 50–70 days. Male chiggers die shortly after mating. Fertilized females lay up to 400 eggs in early spring after the soil begins to warm. The female chigger dies shortly after laying her eggs. In a matter of days, the eggs hatch, producing the chigger’s tiny larval stage. Shortly after hatching, the larvae climb to a perch where they can easily latch onto a passing host. Unlike their tick cousins who sit and wait, chigger larvae are nearly constantly on the move. Larvae feed on a number of host species, including mammals, birds, reptiles and even some amphibians. Larvae are most likely to be found in areas with thick vegetation and high humidity. Due to their thin skin and small size, larvae are susceptible to dehydration. Sandy, dry areas are not humid enough for their survival. After a larva finds a host and feeds for three days, it drops off and crawls into the soil where it develops into the nymph stage. Nymphs are essentially scaleddown versions of adults and feed on tiny soil invertebrates until they are ready to change into adults. Both nymphs and adults have eight legs. Three generations of chiggers are born over the course of spring, summer and early fall. In warmer areas of the Gulf Coast region, chiggers thrive in all three of their life stages at any time of the year.

Fascinating Facts

• A larval chigger’s saliva includes an enzyme that turns skin cells into a liquid, which the larva then drinks.
• Like mosquitoes, chiggers are attracted to the carbon dioxide given off by a passing host.
• Chiggers are capable of getting all over a person’s body in minutes. They climb from a victim’s feet to the belt line (a favorite point of attack) in an ascent that takes about 15 minutes. That’s no small feat for such a small creature; when climbing on a human host, a chigger covers a distance equal to 5,000 times its total length. That’s similar to a human climbing a tall mountain on an empty stomach!

Thanks to Chiggers

• A chigger’s favorite foods include the eggs of springtails (tiny soil insects), isopods (terrestrial crustaceans such as wood lice) and even pesky mosquitoes!
• Chiggers, like other parasites, are a sign of a healthy and diverse natural world.

Myth Busters

MYTH: Itching is caused by chiggers that burrow under your skin and die.

• Chiggers never burrow under skin, and they don’t die on their host. Only their delicate mouthparts pierce the skin; the small dot visible inside the welt is called the stylostome and is the tube where the chigger feeds. On the other hand, another Gulf Coast species, the chigoe flea (sometimes known as the jigger) does actually burrow under its victim’s skin to lay its eggs.

MYTH: Chiggers get their red color from feeding on blood.

• Actually, chiggers are born red. Chiggers feed on liquefied skin tissue, not blood. After a full meal, a chigger turns yellow.

MYTH: Nail polish applied to chigger welts helps relieve the itch.

• This myth persists because of the belief that the nail polish will smother the chigger, preventing it from inflicting more pain. Nevertheless, the stylostome, not the chigger, causes the itching. In fact, if you have a chigger welt, then it’s probably too late; the chigger has already fed and is long gone.

Why They Bite

Remember, chiggers only bite as youngsters, during their larval stage of development. In order to properly develop, they must feed on the skin tissue of a host. Later in life, they feed on insects and vegetation in the soil.

How They Bite

Like ticks, chiggers insert a microscopic beaklike mouthpart into skin depressions in the host. These piercing mouthparts are delicate and can only penetrate thin skin, such as skin follicles or areas where skin wrinkles and folds. That’s why most chigger bites occur around the ankles, the armpits, the back of the knees and just below the belt line. At least one hour, and more likely two to three hours, pass before the chigger actually starts feeding. The chigger releases enzymes that liquefy the skin, and the body reacts by hardening the cells on all sides of the saliva route. Eventually a hard, tube-like structure called a stylostome forms. This pipe-like structure contains the digesting saliva; the chigger inserts its delicate mouth parts into the stylostome and sucks up the liquid skin tissue. In this way, the stylostome serves as something like a tall drinking glass. If a chigger feeds undisturbed, the stylostome and surrounding tissue become inflamed, creating an itchy, red welt. The longer a chigger feeds, the deeper the stylostome grows, and the larger the welt becomes. If undisturbed, the chigger usually remains on the host for three to four days. Though you might detect the first bites in a matter of three or four hours, the worst itching generally occurs 24 to 48 hours after the first bites.

Table of Contents

Species List

• Chiggers
• Ticks
• Fire Ants
• Mosquitoes
• Spiders
• Deer and Horse Flies
• Hornets, Wasps and Yellow Jackets
• Honeybees
• Scorpions
• Bats
• Fish
• Rattlesnakes
• Copperhead Snakes
• Cottonmouth Snakes
• Coral Snakes
• Other Snakes
• Skunks
• Snapping Turtles
• Raccoons
• Coyotes
• Jellyfish
• Stingrays
• Alligators and Crocodiles
• Sharks