Insects and People: Insects that Annoy and Hurt Directly

Why are most people afraid of insects?
  • Because of how they were raised/their parents
Why are most young children not afraid of insects?
  • Because they haven’t been taught to be afraid of them yet
How many people in the U.S. die each year from insect bites and stings?
  • 90-100

Annoyance with No Significant Injury

  • Screaming crickets, creepy crawlers, and ugly roaches
  • Level of annoyance varies with individual and insect
  • Insects and other arthropods fall into multiple “risk” categories.
  • Most arthropod species have no impact on us, and should be treated as harmless
  • Entomophobia: an irrational fear of insects
      * whether or not they pose a threat or danger
  • Delusional parasitosis: belief that non-existent insects are crawling on or biting one’s body

Insects and Other Arthropods Causing Direct Pain or Medical Problem

  • Urticating hairs, sharp mandibles, and spiny legs
  • Blood-sucking bites
      * Many flies, mosquitoes, and some other
        * Need blood for eggs
        * A good source of protein
      * Other arthropods like ticks and mites are also painful
      * Mouthparts may needle in or cut and slash
        * Usually with various irritants
  • Venomous bites from “poison” fangs
      * Black widows with the red hourglass
      * Brown recluse with the fiddle or violin
  • Lots of bees, ants, and wasps (Hymenoptera) can deliver painful stings.
      * Venom can be a variety of things but commonly have formic acid or alkalines
  • Venomous vs Poisonous: venom is injected through a bite or sting, and poison is ingested or touched
  • In the United States, some of the most painful stings (according to Justin Schmidt’s pain index): Tarantula Hawk Wasps, Cow Killers (Velvet Ants), Fire Ants
  • Stings; ex. Hymenoptera
      * What’s in the venom
      * Alarm pheromones and multiple stings
  • The most painful bite, sting, or toxic venom
  • Parasites: living in or on another organism (host) at the host’s expense
      * Anoplura: head lice and nits, cooties, and crabs:
      * Acarina: itch mites and follicle mites
  • Diptera:
      * myiasis: the invasion of living or necrotic tissue by fly larvae (maggots);
      * maggots invading living tissue
  • Hemiptera: bed bugs, people, and chickens
  • Siphonaptera: fleas and dogs
  • Body lice: A different subspecies of human lice that live in the seams of clothes. Common in homeless people without frequent access to clothes washing

Allergies and Reactions Beyond Normal

  • Some insects may cause allergies or long-term breathing issues after repeated and continuous exposure
      * Asthma in kids in the city from cockroaches
      * Dust mites
  • Some people are allergic to stings produced by insects
      * Less than 1% of the population and varies by person
      * Swelling, anaphylactic shock, or death
      * The allergy is to something in the venom