clothes moth paranoia continued

[Doug Yanega]

Liz Day wrote:

>Doug Yanega wrote:
>
>> Actually, here in Brazil, people do not seem to expect moths to eat
>> clothes, but what they DO think is that all hairy caterpillars cannot be
>> touched. Given that a few people die almost every year in Brazil from
>> contact with Lonomia larvae, it's an understandable thing for them to be
>> ultra-cautious
>
>They DIE?  I'm not familiar with this species/genus.

Big, dull Hemileucine Saturniidae (several species), some of whose larvae
have an incredibly potent fibrinolytic anticoagulant venom - L. obliqua and
L. achelous seem to be the worst culprits, though all species are at least
mildly irritating. Even if you don't die, victims may hemorrhage for a
month before recovering.

Kelen, E.M.A., Picarelli, Z.P., Duarte, A.C. 1995. Hemorrhagic syndrome
induced by contact with caterpillars of the genus Lonomia. J. Toxicol.:
Toxin Rev. 14 (3): 283-308

Doug Yanega    Depto. de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Ciencias Biologicas,
Univ. Fed. de Minas Gerais, Cx.P. 486, 30.161-970 Belo Horizonte, MG   BRAZIL
phone: 031-449-2579, fax: 031-441-5481  (from U.S., prefix 011-55)
                  http://www.icb.ufmg.br/~dyanega/
  "There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness
        is the true method" - Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chap. 82