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creepy crawly
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Author:  tjungarayi [ Sun May 07, 2006 11:40 pm ]
Post subject:  creepy crawly
As a newcomer to lamma Island and its summer I have been distressed to learn (the painful way) all about the lamma centipede. A menage et trois is perhaps a fantasy of most men but at five o'clock in the morning in my bed, the centipede did not inspire my partner or I.
The bite was incredibly painful and we were 'stumped' at what to do. 999 was useless as they put me on to the after hours of the dept of animal etc. They sounded more concerned for the insect. After disturbing a local doctor it was down to pain killers. After all this we thought the whole incident was an aberation and that this happening again was incredibly remote. Nevertheless we put our three year old son between us at night figuring a centipede would bite us adults. A bit like making sure you swim between flags so that the chances of you being bitten by a shark are lessoned by the simple fact of being with a hundred other people.
In less than a week I woke to my partner's shriek of centipede, centipede. Would you beleive it, 5 am. I woke with a start, and flicked the wicked ugly disciple of the devil off our bed. Simultaneously, my partner seized our son and flung herself away from the cursed creep. I quickly grabbed the nearest shoe and whacked the brute only to see it dart around the side of the bed. Anyone having experience with these things will know how darstedly quick they are. My partner and son, now out of the room allowed me to virtually dissassemble the room and I finally found the cunning thing. It seemed to know it had been seen as it darted speedily before my trusty leather shoe resounded with an almighty 'thwack' on its armoured carapace. The beast had crawled up my partners leg while in bed.
The first centipede had bitten my partner on the neck. I guess we were lucky the second time. Nevertheless, these two incidents have understandably left us with a seige mentality and thoughts of moving from Lamma and even the tropics. There are no venomous creatures in Iceland.
We have since learned that only one recorded death has occurred from a centipede bite. This was in the Philippines and the seven year old was bitten on the face. I am in no doubt that this is the same centipede as the Philippines are not far away. Centipedes have been known to eat mice, snakes, toads and their peers. The local answer or remedy to my inquiries have been sulpher (or sulfer) and I have watched centipedes crawl happily through the yellow chalk seemingly unaffected. I gassed one with normal insecticide and the critter died post haste.
Does anyone have a sure fire remedy to keep these ugly aggressive nocturnal armoured centipedes away from homes. Please let me know.
Author:  zep [ Mon May 08, 2006 8:53 am ]
Post subject: 
This topic has been covered in some detail in the flora and fauna section, but we've never really resolved how to keep free of these beasts. Your account is an unusually detailed and graphic description of the horror these beasts can cause. I guess one of the best options is to look to securing the premises from entry - covers to prevent entry under doors, through drainpipes etc as well as chemical warfare in the surrounding area - sulphur or insecticides (again not really great when young children are around). Are you in a ground floor apartments? And is it close to drains/swamps? Some of the local flat-owners round where I live (Tai Peng) seem to have had some success in reducing the problem, so it might be worth finding out what they use.
Author:  Alan [ Tue May 09, 2006 2:16 am ]
Post subject: 
They're poisonous, but hardly ever lethal. Even my wife, who is very allegic to bug bites, has survived a few visits.

Preventative measures; same as for mosquitoes: put screens on all windows and steel doors you leave open. They do, for some reason, like to snuggle up in the bedsheets. So shake them out before retiring. You could fumigate the bedroom for a few hours before going to bed -- burn a mosquito coil with the windows and doors closed. Bug sprays are effective, if you suspect any hiding under the furniture, a spray and they usually scuttle out to die.

At least mosquitoes are after sustenance, the centipedes just seem to be malicious.
Author:  Lamma-Gung [ Tue May 09, 2006 9:28 am ]
Post subject: 
Very sound and practical advice, Alan.

I've been following the "Screens on all open windows, seal the bottom of all doors and close the fan flaps when not running them" advice since moving to Lamma 4.5 years ago. We've never had a centipede in our flat, as far as we know, and have never been bitten, fingers crossed.
Only once, when I left the bath room fan flap open while the fan wasn't running, we got one of the long-legged black, quite harmless variety in our bathroom, but it didn't bite me.

This method is also a great way of avoiding mosquitoes, ants, geckos, snakes, rats, spiders, cockroaches and almost all creepy crawlies. Living close to nature, but not too close, is our motto.

We get about one mosquito per week in our flat these days, so we don't bother with any stinky coils, breakable mosquito bats, traps or other measures. We also don't see any creepy crawlies in our flat at all, even though we live just besides a swamp and a natural drainage channel.

We see quite a lot of the orange, poisonous centipedes around the house. The smaller ones are really fast wall climbers, so can get in through unscreened, open windows.

But NOT living in a G/F apartment makes a major difference as well. We've lived on the 27/F on HK Island before and never got mosquitoes, even though we left our (unscreened) windows open day and night...
Author:  Fortune Chan [ Tue May 09, 2006 9:57 am ]
Post subject: 
You could try washing door and window frames and even the floors with a mix of vinegar and fresh lemon juice, as they are said to not be able to cross such a tangy mixture. Even chilli powder... but then that's not so good for a child.

You might have a nest somewhere in the flat. Take everything out, check it bit by bit (with a flipflop close to hand) including all drawers etc, and put a lot of very hot water down all the drains. Also check the cracks between floor and wall around your building. Spray with hot water (or nasty chemical) to flush them out and then seal the cracks. They like it warm and humid so you could try for a while freezing them out with dehumidifiers and full blast aircons.

Then, as LG says, block up all routes in.

And if you do see one after all this, US Army Vietnam-issue flame throwers work very well.

And always remember, in the war with the Pede, don't get scared, get angry.
Author:  Alan [ Tue May 09, 2006 10:35 am ]
Post subject: 
Fortune Chan {L_WROTE}:
You might have a nest somewhere in the flat.

If you have a nest, you see several very small ones, all the same size, gradually getting larger as time goes by. I killed a huge female one once, full of eggs. If they'd hatched, the only option would have been to take off and nuke the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.
Author:  Lamma-Gung [ Tue May 09, 2006 10:41 am ]
Post subject: 
A serious message with good and sound advice, coming from Mr Fortune? Very hard to believe!

What's next? The da Vinci Code being all true? The sky falling on our heads?
All of Lamma's barflies becoming tee-totallers, putting the bars out of business?
Author:  Lamma-Gung [ Tue May 09, 2006 10:45 am ]
Post subject: 
Alan {L_WROTE}:
...the only option would have been to take off and nuke the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

Yes, Alan, we love that movie, too!

But that quote was assuming that all the human settlers had already been killed or inhabited by the Aliens. We hope it won't come to that here on Lamma...

But there ARE some eerie, unsettling parallels between our centipedes and Aliens...
Author:  minibeast [ Tue May 09, 2006 11:37 am ]
Post subject: 
the local sulphur powder available here on lamma is not effective against centipedes or snakes. the one to buy is called 'lo wong fun' -- you have to get it in town, though not sure what kind of shop, maybe chinese medicine. The package I've got has a dragon on the front. It has proved effective so far in keeping snakes away, so hopefully it'd work for centipedes too. barbecue tongs are also handy for centipede removal if you don't want to kill them....
Author:  zep [ Tue May 09, 2006 11:50 am ]
Post subject: 
Do you have a photo of the effective concoction?
Author:  Lamma-Gung [ Tue May 09, 2006 11:52 am ]
Post subject: 
minibeast,

Next time you "remove a centipede with a barbecue tong", could you have somebody take a picture of it for publication, please:

Headline: "Brave Minibeast Triumphs over Ferocious Mini Beast"
Author:  nobby [ Tue May 09, 2006 5:09 pm ]
Post subject: 
put some mozzi screen over the bathroom and kitchen floor drain, most flats don't have a trap so they can get in from the drains
Author:  Alan [ Tue May 09, 2006 7:15 pm ]
Post subject: 
minibeast {L_WROTE}:
The package I've got has a dragon on the front. It has proved effective so far in keeping snakes away, so hopefully it'd work for centipedes too.

It must be amazingly toxic. Snakes are a lot closer to us biologically than centipedes. If it's bad for both of them, it's probably bad for humans.
Author:  minibeast [ Tue May 09, 2006 10:57 pm ]
Post subject: 
Zep, I don't have a photo right now but i can take one for you.

Lamma-Gung, whenever i have had to remove a centipede it's been by running frantically yelling to the garden holding the tongs at arm's length and flinging the beast into the undergrowth. hopefully no-one will ever capture this on film!

re: toxicity of sulphur powder. Alan, am sure you are right. definitely not to be ingested, breathed in or in contact with the skin. obviously something like this must be handled with great care. but as i said, it seems to keep the snakes and centipedes away from the house (they're still in the garden and woods nearby though)

(see http://www.webelements.com/webelements/ ... S/key.html and wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfur for scientific info on sulphur. )
Author:  Lamma-Gung [ Wed May 10, 2006 8:47 am ]
Post subject: 
{L_IMAGE}

Sulphur miner carrrying up to 100 kg on their shoulders down from a volcano in Indonesia.
Author:  Alan [ Wed May 10, 2006 10:31 am ]
Post subject: 
minibeast {L_WROTE}:
toxicity of sulphur powder. Alan, am sure you are right. definitely not to be ingested, breathed in or in contact with the skin.

Actually, pure sulphur isn't very toxic.
<a href="http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/profiles/extoxnet/pyrethrins-ziram/sulfur-ext.html">Pesticide Management Education Program</a>:
{L_QUOTE}:
Sulfur is known to be of low toxicity, and poses very little if any risk to human and animal health. Short-term studies show that sulfur is of very low acute oral toxicity and does not irritate the skin (it has been placed in EPA Toxicity Category IV, the least toxic category, for these effects). Sulfur also is not a skin sensitizer. However, it can cause some eye irritation, dermal toxicity and inhalation hazards.

When I was a spotty teenager, I took a spoonful of sulphur powder mixed with honey every day for a few months in a vain attempt to clear up my skin ... since my mother got this from a pharmacist over the counter it can't have been too dangerous. It may not have been effective, but it didn't hurt.

That's why I'm suspicious whether this yellow powder used here to keep bugs out really is sulphur. The locals would use Agent Orange as a weedkiller if they could get it cheap.
Author:  minibeast [ Wed May 10, 2006 3:35 pm ]
Post subject: 
so Alan, do you think the powder is not sulphur at all or that it is sulphur plus a hidden ingredient?

back to centipedes.... tjungarayi, to keep centipedes at bay in a non-toxic-to-humans way, you may want to investigate a substance called diatomaceous earth. sold sometimes under the name permaguard. it's composed of the hard shells of microscopic seacreatures (see http://www.zetatalk.com/food/tfoox041.htm for some info and links). it has a wide variety of uses, such as keeping pests like slugs off plants as well as (food grade) for keeping stores of grains and legumes free of bugs like weevils.

d.e. is quite nasty for the insects as it kills them by slicing through their hard exteriors. But it is evidently harmless to humans and large animals. it could be sprinkled carefully around areas where centipedes may be likely to try and get in. then of course it will also kill other more friendly insects that wander by as well.... but it may help prevent the problem in a way that's safe for you and your family.

it is available at herboland!
Author:  Alan [ Wed May 10, 2006 4:26 pm ]
Post subject: 
minibeast {L_WROTE}:
so Alan, do you think the powder is not sulphur at all or that it is sulphur plus a hidden ingredient?

I don't know what it is, but assume if it works it's probably dangerous. From a little research, pure sulphur is used to kill fungus and mites. Some pesticides include it as an ingredient; so it's the admixture I'd worry about.
Author:  tjungarayi [ Thu May 11, 2006 7:49 am ]
Post subject:  Silurian Arthropods
Thanks guys for the advice and help. It is nice to know there is virtual/cyber support on this island.
It seems the arthropod has survived since the Silurian epoch and I don't think I am going to be rid of them totally. A Chinese lady educated me to the efficacy of the mosquito net to keep unsavoury paramours out of ones bed. I have bloked off door way gaps but considered the drains safe. CINDERS and ASHES, can centipedes really swim underwater? I have also added to the decor of the flat with a nice lemon coloured fringe. I am also awaiting the arrival of my GPRT4675 all purpose flame thrower, recommended highly by USMC.
Howerver, all said and done I eagerly await the winter.
Author:  Down the deli [ Thu May 11, 2006 10:16 am ]
Post subject:  How to get rid of centipedes
Centipedes are predatory animals and generally eat other insects though the other day I saw one wolfing down the neighbours cat! Ha only joking! If you can keep your house free of cockroaches that'll reduce the pede problem.

When you find one what is the most effective way to kill them? Shoes are pretty good but by far the best way is scooping them up with chopsticks and serving them up on toast with hot butter. Make damn sure you crush its head between your teeth before swallowing otherwise it'll crawll up your throat to haunt you again.....enough of this bullshit!
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