centipides in Caribbean??

[psych22]

Hi All,

I can get used to most of the downgrading that is required with moving to a 3rd world country... but my issue is with bugs, specifically, centipedes & millipedes which I hear are common in the Caribbean islands such as Dominica, Saba, St. Maarten, Grenada etc.

Although this is an extreme-sized centipede, check out this video:
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/157649/centipede_eats_mouse/
Here's a funny vid of a cockroach in a dorm at American University of Caribbean:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5A6pnJF8A0

Btw, centipedes ARE poisonous...

Anybody have any stories or input on the prevalence of these nasty things? Also nasty are cockroaches, but because I lived in Iran for a year and have visited the Middle East often, I am not actually afraid of of cockroaches... its the poisonous things that freak me out.

I currently live in Orange County, CA and the worst I have to deal with now (fortunately) is ants.

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[RussianJoo]

yes they're around. yes they eat small animals. no way to avoid them just deal with it or don't go to the caribbean for med school.

 

[dtwalrus]

Haha, love seeing this post.

The summer before I applied to SGU I attended a friends wedding in the Caribbean. Late one evening, while mostly minding my own business, I unknowingly knocked a centipede off it's perch, it landed on my foot, and apparently was upset. I can tell you that the average 6" centipede you'll come across down there packs quite a bite. From an evolutionary standpoint, they're quite similar to scorpions, as is their venom.

Most painful experience of my life.

Needless to say, I've been quite relieved to find that thusfar I've neither seen, nor heard of anyone else personally seeing one in Grenada. Undoubtedly they're around, but they don't seem to make themselves known around the campus.

Just in case, I refuse to wear flipflops...

 

[psych22]

Haha, love seeing this post.

The summer before I applied to SGU I attended a friends wedding in the Caribbean. Late one evening, while mostly minding my own business, I unknowingly knocked a centipede off it's perch, it landed on my foot, and apparently was upset. I can tell you that the average 6" centipede you'll come across down there packs quite a bite. From an evolutionary standpoint, they're quite similar to scorpions, as is their venom.

Most painful experience of my life.

Needless to say, I've been quite relieved to find that thusfar I've neither seen, nor heard of anyone else personally seeing one in Grenada. Undoubtedly they're around, but they don't seem to make themselves known around the campus.

Just in case, I refuse to wear flipflops...

wow.. that is absolutely horrifying! thanks for sharing. i wonder what's the worst that centipede venom could do to a human (depending on how/where it stings).

i may find myself making med school preferences based on centipede population sizes 😉

 

[NAVYLABTECH08]

wow.. that is absolutely horrifying! thanks for sharing. i wonder what's the worst that centipede venom could do to a human (depending on how/where it stings).

i may find myself making med school preferences based on centipede population sizes 😉

there has been 1 reported human death via centipede bite. A vietanamese centipede, that are not just in Vietnam, bit a small girl on the head and she died. The others should be treated like bee stings. From what I remember from class, centipedes bite is painful for up to 2-3 hrs, like a bee sting. however, you should not die unless you experience extreme Type I immunological hypersentvity. (anaphalyptic shock)

 

[Theillestill]

just carry an epipen around with you wherever you go then

 

[Diane Lane]

Yes, the centipedes in Grenada are like terminators. We had one in the kitchen and hit it with every weapon that we had. Nothing killed it so we just used a broom and pushed it back outside. For the most part, you will not see many. But every country has its own unique pests. If your decision to move to a country depends upon the bugs it has, then you have much bigger problems than you think.

 

[Baditude]

I got bit twice but a very large centipede in St.Maarten when it came up my shower drain while I was in the shower. I will never go back to that island again. It was very painful and took about 10 days before the swelling and pain was gone.

 

[NAVYLABTECH08]

Is the centipede problem centered around AUC & ST. G, or are Ross & SABA dealing with this problem too?

 

[digitalising]

I've seen a few centipedes; so far they are small. The largest millipede I've seen thus far has been maybe five inches, but millipedes are harmless and slow moving. I just sweep them outside.

Now, if the centipedes start coming in, those little bastards are speedy and I'm going to go nuclear on them.

 

[tracheatoedoc]

Don't worry about centipedes.
The rats are huge in the islands.

 

[medpal]

Yes, the centipedes in Grenada are like terminators. We had one in the kitchen and hit it with every weapon that we had. Nothing killed it so we just used a broom and pushed it back outside. For the most part, you will not see many. But every country has its own unique pests. If your decision to move to a country depends upon the bugs it has, then you have much bigger problems than you think.

Diane Lane, your commentary is both funny and well-stated!

 

[Tigerz_Fan]

Well, I hate to bring this thread back to life, but boy it brought back memories!

I just loved how every time I did laundry I found a centipede dead in the bottom of the washing machine. Wasn't there when I put the clothes in the wash. That meant it was hiding out in my laundry. I can't believe I was never bitten.

A classmate of mine was bitten when he sat down on his sofa. The bug was hiding out in the sofa cushions!

And just to top it off:
Let me just say this first. There are no centipedes at my parents house. One day about a month after I returned to the states, I am studying for step 1 at their house. I heard some commotion from under the bed. Out comes the cat chasing a centipede! Thing was about 6 inches long. For it to get there, it must have hitched a ride in my baggage. 😱😱

Bottom line: be careful when you do laundry, check the sofa occasionally, and beware of your bags!

 

[vampiresoup]

That rat video was effin crazy. Creeped me out!!!