About this book

The book presents modern scientific information about the parasitic, poisonous, and predatory animals of Eurasia that pose a danger for humans. These 535 illustrations depict 280 species of animals. There is given reliable information about their morphological, biological, ecological characteristics, forms of impact on humans, the degree of danger, as well as methods of protection against them, first aid and the prevention of diseases, that caused by them. The book is illustrated with a large number of colorful, scientifically reliable drawings and created with the direct consultations of specialist scientists. It is intended for students of educational institutions and non-specialist audiences.

Invertebrates is an amazing world, striking in its diversity. It includes protozoa and helminths, sponges, jellyfish and corals, dangerous parasitic animals and amazingly beautiful mollusks, sea urchins, stars, and many other unusual and mysterious creatures. Invertebrates include the great majority of animals that inhabit the globe, they are distributed everywhere — in fresh water, in the seas and oceans, on land, in the depth of the soil. Many of them are parasites of animals and plants, possess a poison and can pose a real danger to humans.

Cyaneidae

Lion's mane jellyfish (Cyanea capillata)

The diameter of the dome is 50–60 cm, sometimes it is up to 2 m. It lives in all the northern seas of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in the surface layers of water near the coast. Cyanea is a predator, their long numerous tentacles are seated with stinging cells, while fired a strong poison penetrates the victim’s body, that kills small animals and causes a damage to larger ones. In case of contact with the tentacles of Cyanea occurs a burning pain after a few seconds, but after 10–20 minutes appear skin lesions (erythema) and sometimes swelling persists for up to two days. The treatment is symptomatic.

Rhizostomatidae

Barrel jellyfish (Rhizostoma pulmo)

It mainly lives in the Black and Azov Seas. It has a dome up to 50 cm in diameter. Rhizostoma pulmo is a predator that eats small fish, worms, and crustaceans. Jellyfish paralyze their prey with the help of the toxic peptide rhizostomine and after successfully eat it. Touching its mouth blades causes burns, irritation of the skin and eyes.

Sepiidae

European common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis)

It lives in the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The body length is 20–30 cm. The grasping tentacles are the same length and have 4 rows of suckers. It used for human consumption. It stays near the bottom, hides on the ground, throwing sand or silt on its back and changes the coloration of the back in accordance with its color of the sand. It attacks from ambush small crabs, shrimps, fishes. Biogenic amines and toxic proteins are found in its venom.

The arthropod fauna of Eurasia is rich and diverse. Although the overwhelmed majority of its representatives are harmless, but some species of arachnids, centipedes and insects can be harmful and pose a real danger to human health and life, because due to their abundance and wide distribution encounters with them are not so rare. Those species are able to bite, sting, poison with venom, cause and carry various diseases.  Sufficient knowledge and the capability to distinguish dangerous species in nature, the ability to apply methods of protection and first aid for injections, bites and poisonous lesions will give confidence and help to avoid unpleasant situations in case of possible contact with poisonous and dangerous arthropods.

Euscorpiidae

Euscorpius italicus

The body length is about 55 mm. It lives in the Middle East, the Caucasus, Transcaucasia, North Africa, South-Western Europe, and Southern Europe. It is distributed from Sochi to Batumi along the narrow coastal forest belt of the Black Sea. A coloration varies from reddish brown to dark brown.

Euscorpiidae

Euscorpius tauricus

The body length is 35–40 mm.  It can be found in the southern coast of Crimea. As a rule, its stings are practically harmless to human, excepting that fact, that they are unpleasant and painful.

Galeodidae

Galeodes caspius

The length is 45–55  mm. It is found on the territory of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan; it prefers clay deserts. As many of Solifugae, it is completely non-venomous, although a bite can be painful. Large individuals are able to bite through human skin till it bleeds.

Theridiidae

Mediterranean black widow (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus)

Females (9–17 mm) are larger than males (3–6 mm). It is distributed from the Canary Islands to China in desert and steppe regions. Only female can pose a danger. It is difficult to notice the bite site; have no obvious painful symptoms at first, but after a few minutes can be felt severe pain throughout the body, nausea, vomiting, and shortness of breath. Lethal outcomes of humans and farm animals have been reported. In case of bitten it is necessary to administer first aid.

Lycosidae

Lycosa praegrandis

The body length of the male is 18 mm; the female is about 30 mm. It is distributed in deserts and semi-deserts from Greece to Kazakhstan. I t is an active at night, moving on the ground in search of prey. It usually does not burrow deep holes. During the day it hides under stones or other objects.

The chelicerae of Solfugae do not have any post-mortem poison since they only have live prey in their diet, and it is thoroughly cleaned after a meal.

Male

Female

Pisauridae

Hobo spider (Eratigena agrestis)

The body length of the male is up to 10 mm; the female is up to 15 mm. It is distributed in Europe, Asia, and North America. They live in settlements, building funnel-dens in the corners and cracks of walls and fences. They are not dangerous to humans, but their bites can be quite sensible.

The front legs are equipped with claws that securely cling to people and animals passing by

Sarcoptidae

Itch mite (Sarcoptes scabiei)

It is an intradermal parasite, that can cause contagious disease — itchiness. The length of the male is up to 0.23 mm, the female is up to 0.45 mm. They suck blood. Females gnaw long winding passages in the skin and fill them with eggs and feces. In case of itching, it is necessary to have an urgent appeal to a doctor, who will prescribe the appropriate treatment, which consists of the using of special ointments. Personal hygiene has a great importance for the prevention of the disease.

Pyroglyphidae

Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus

The length can vary from 0.1–0.5 mm. It is distributed over the globe. There are about 200 species of house dust mites. They inhabits human dwellings and can cause allergic reactions. They live in mattresses, carpets, etc. The life cycle is 65–80 days. They feed on dead skin cells. This type is one of the most common cause of asthma. Methods of controlling are air cleaners.

Ixodidae

Dermacentor marginatus

The body length is 3.5–5 mm. It can be found in the steppes and forest-steppes of the European part of Russia, Transcaucasia, Kazakhstan, in the mountains of Central Asia, and in the south of Western Siberia. Ticks of this genus are carriers of pathogens of tick-borne North Asian rickettsial disease, Omsk hemorrhagic fever, and in some places — tick-borne encephalitis. They are carriers of plague, tularemia, Q fever, brucellosis and canine piroplasmosis.

Chrysomelidae

Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata)

The body length is 9–12 mm. It is common on nightshade family. It is a dangerous potato pest. Its homeland is considered to be the west of North America. The hemolymph of the beetle is poisonous to invertebrates and vertebrates. After collecting beetles and their larvae process, it is recommended to wash hands thoroughly and use gloves to protect potatoes from their poisonous hemolymph.

Vespidae

German wasp (Vespula germanica)

The body length is 12–20  mm. It can be found throughout Eurasia. As most of eusocial wasps, before the attack, it first warns the offender by hitting him with its forehead several times. After that it sprays with droplets of poison with an alarm pheromone and only after the wasps of the entire nest fly at the victim. Their multiple stabs can lead to the lethal outcome.

Vespidae

Polistes sp.

The body length is 14–23 mm. Representatives of the genus are widespread and often make their nests in attics and under the roofs of human buildings. Their mass attacks are dangerous, as a result of damages to nests.

Formicidae

Pharaoh ant  (Monomorium pharaonis)

The body length is 2–2.5 mm long. It is distributed throughout the world. It is able to penetrate everywhere and spoil all products. Their presence in hospitals is quite dangerous, as they can be mechanical carriers of diseases. Penetrating into operating rooms the can disrupt a sterility. Method of controlling is a fumigation.

Pharaoh ants make their nests in all sorts of voids and other inaccessible places.

Pulicidae

Human flea (Pulex irritans)

The body length is 3–4 mm. It can jump up to 32 cm. It is an external parasite of humans and dogs; it can be passed to other animals. It is a main carrier of the plague pathogen; and intermediate host of some animal helminths, that can be found in humans.

Male

Eggs

Pupae

Culicidae

Aedes

are distributed in tropical and subtropical zones on all continents. Its length is up to 6 mm. Sometimes they breed in large numbers and become very annoying bloodsuckers. They can be mechanical carriers of tularemia pathogens of rodents, other dangerous diseases, and helminth eggs.

A congested female of Aedes

Calliphoridae

Common greenbottle (Lucilia caezar)

The body length is about 8 mm. It is distributed around the globe. It is one of the main utilizers of corpses. It is a causative agent of skin and abdominal myiasis and as other species of the genus, is a carrier of microbes and helminth eggs.

Muscidae

Stable fly (Stomoxys calcitrans)

The body length is 5.5–7 mm. It is a bloodsucker attacking animals and humans. It is distributed around the globe. The number of individuals increases towards the end of summer and to the beginning of autumn. It mainly inhabits in rural areas, but sometimes can be found in cities. Stable flies suck blood (both females and males) one time every two days. It can mechanically from a sick animal to healthy animals and humans carry pathogens of anthrax, sepsis, tularemia, trypanosomiasis, and other diseases. They are able to lay eggs in the wounds of animals and humans, where the larvae are developed.

Tabanidae

Hybomitra lundbecki

The body length of adults is 11–18 mm. They have large yellow spots on the sides of the abdomen. As other gadflies, it is active during the day in warm sunny time. Its stabs are very painful. At the moment of biting the female injects saliva into the wound, which prevents blood coagulability. Owing to the numbers of gadflies and their stabs it is impossible to be in the open air. But the main danger is they can be a carriers of anthrax bacilli.

Poisonous animals are divided into primary poisonous — producing poison in special glands or having poisonous metabolic products, and secondary poisonous — accumulating poisons, being toxic only when they are eaten. According to the methods of production and using of poison primary poisonous differ in active and passive poisonous ones. Active poisonous animals have more effective poison apparatus, that equipped with a wounding adaptation (for example, thorns and spines of fish, teeth of snakes) are called armed. Those animals, that are not equipped with a wounding adaptation are called disarmed. (for example, amphibian). Passive poisonous animals produce poison in the body, accumulating it in various tissues and organs (for example, some fish).

Rajiformes

Common stingray (Dasyatis pastinaca)

The length is 1 meter.  It inhabits in the Azov and Black Seas.

Roundrays inhabit almost every sea of Eurasia. In the middle of its tail it has one or two crenate poisonous spines. The wounds inflicted by them are quite dangerous, but in some cases, depending on the location it can be fatal. The wound of roundrays should be debrided as any other. If limbs are affected, the recovery usually occurs within a few days.

Scorpaeniformes

Black scorpionfish (Scorpaena porcus)

The length is up to 0,5 meters. It inhabits the Black Sea. The rays of the anterior dorsal fin are poisonous and the rays of the ventral and proctal fins can also be poisonous. The symptoms of poison toxicity can be a local inflammation and general allergic reaction.

The main difference of black scorpionfish is its cutaneous outgrowths on the head.

The typical situation of being pricked with a poisonous spine of Roundrays (on click)

Bufonidae

Common toad (Bufo bufo)

Usually the male length is up to 9 cm, and the female length is up to 13 cm, but also can reach 20 cm. Their habitat is almost the entire territory of Europe, except Ireland and Northern Scandinavia, Western Turkey, Russia, Northwestern, and Northern Kazakhstan. Nocturnal amphibians mostly active in rainy weather. Common toads get along well with humans. It inhabits forests, gardens, parks, shrubs, and beams in the steppes, where it prefers damp places with high vegetation. A body coloration varies and depends on gender, age, and season.

Common toads lead reclusive life, they can get together only during the breeding season.

In case of being attacked by enemy the common toad takes a defensive position, it inflates its body and rises on legs.

Elapidae

Caspian cobra (Naja oxiana)

A large snake with the length is up to 1.6 meters. In inhabits regions of Central Asia.A cobra has a calm temper, and cases of human bites by it are rare. It is active at spring. It inhabits submontane (sometimes desert), lawny hills, and rocky cliffs, water gaps, ruins, and graveyards, ditches, and mostly close to borrows of rodents.  Its venom can destroy blood and paralyze nervous system. But have been recorded very few deaths from cobra bites, though it always warns with a threat posture — hissing and rising above the ground. It also often produces a so-called “scammy bite” when it hits the enemy with its muzzle without releasing a venom.

The main sense organ of the snake — a long, forked at the end tongue. Molecules of odorous substances that enter the tongue are transferred to the paired olfactory organ — Jacobson's organ.

Felidae

Tiger (Panthera tigris)

It is one of the rare representatives of world fauna. Siberian tiger sub-species inhabits broad-leaved and cedar-broad-leaved forests of the Far East. The body length is 3 meters (with a tail), the shoulder height is more than 1 meter, the weight is up to 275 kg. It almost never attacks a human and avoid them, rarely enters settlements.

Tiger populations:

•Bengal tiger

•Siberian tiger

•South China tiger •Indochinese tiger

•Malayan tiger

Suidae

Wild boar (Sus scrofa)

The length is up to 1,8 meters, the weight is 150–200 kg. It inhabits steppe zones of Eurasia, Central Asia, and the north-east territory of Western Asia. It differs from domestic pigs a laterally flattened body, heavy and gray-brown bristles, males’ large fangs, and a black snout. Usually is very cautious and avoid a close encounter with humans. Their meat can be a source of dangerous disease.

A pig with piglets and a wounded boar can be dangerous. Although the female has short fangs, it can trample to death with its hooves or bite. While being attacked, it is recommended to jump to the side, preferably under the cover of a tree (having missed, the boar does not return).

Bovidae

Cattle (Bos taurus)

In rare cases bull is capable of being aggressive towards humans.

Cattle and small cattle can be dangerous as a protentional source of infection of many diseases: anthrax, intestinal parasites, rabies, brucellosis, swamp fever, Q fever, jaundice, leptospirosis, etc.