TOUCH WITH NATURE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2811, 26 August 1908, Page 15

TOUCH WITH NATURE.

.THE . KATIPOj-SPIDEBj!

(B* James D&matb < NiyF.L.&; P.Z.S.I On the principle that it is more flattering fy be notorious -than unknown, the katipo Spider should take some kind of savage pride in tne fact that it is absolutely fh«,<H3ly venomous creature in the whole range of a country's animal life. Its position is a distinguished one. Very few ptner animal in the" world hold the same . distinction. • Living with i>l*e law-abiding and inoffensive inhabitants $>f New Zealand, it is in much the same position as the ferocious pirate of old days when he went Amongst companies of jpeaceful traders* X is neither loved nor respected, but it is heartily feared, and the dread of its venomous bites is fairly 'deeply seated in mortal breasts. Some months ago I had an opportunity of visiting the katipo in one of its bestItnown haunts. This in the district extending from along the -west coast of -Wellington province, from Paraparaumu or Waitanae 'to the mouth of the Manawatu River, .and further north. For many I years the spider has been known to live there in large numbers. It is from that district that most_ bites have been reported. In F-ebruary last I reached Wai- ! kanae in a sailing boat from Kapiti Island, i but, a 6 I had to return .almost immediattely, 1 had very little time to observe the creature's habits. A gentleman who lives in a cottage on the sandhills lifted tip a log of wood, and showed me several specimens, all very much alive and energetic. I caught one, placed it in a match--ibox, and kept it alive until I had an .opportunity to put it iin a small bottle of alcohol, in which it is now preserved. The katipo's range extends along most of the coasts of the North Island,, and in Nelson, Marlborough, and Kaikoura, as far south as Bank's Peninsula. It is usually found in sandy places near the shore, but it has been recorded some miles inland, notably at Rangiora and Woodend, in Canterbury. It „ bas never been recorded away from sand nor inside a house. The katipo ' is an. exceptionally handsome spider." Its body is smaller than i an average pea, and is jet blacky having the" appearance of a large shot that had ; been carefully burnished. Its real beauty I Mes in a coloured band, which extends from its head all the way down its back, j The band is light red in colour, almost approaching pink, and is bordered on both eides, along the whole length, with yellow. : The marks that make the band are dia-mond-shaped, all the diamonds being linked together, making the complete band. When the legs are stretched' out they measure from tip to tip abput threequarters of an inch, but the body, though iandsame and. striking, is small and insignificant. I have described this specimen because there seems to be some confusion in tbas respect. The spider has been described as red, yellow, black and "white, with a band, a cross, and black spots. The red katipo is pTobably a myth; the other colours are seen in the different stages of the creature's growth. When it is young the body is white, with two series of black spots, and a line of red; in the next stage the body becomes yellowish with black spots ; . later on the (band becomes brighter, with a yellow tint ; and then, apparently, comes the jet black body and the red band, bordered with yellow.- j Early in this year two cases of poieoning were treated at the Palmerston North Hospital, and Dr A. A. Martin, who attended to them, has kindly sent me some observations on his experiences. In the first- case, a young man, about 25 years of age, -was bitten while he was bathing on the Foxton beach, at the mouth of the ■Manawatu River. He left his tiousers on the shore. A katipo got inside them, and while he was adjusting his bra-ces he ■was bitt-en on the left leg. He was taken to the hospital several hours after he was bitten. His pulse was rapid, his temperature vrss at 101.5. there was a distinct' patch of -redness at the site of the bite, nis leg and thigh were tender, and he sp.id it hurt him to be touched on the left side ; he had a slight headache, but did ii- vomit; and there was a slight SAveU- ;'; ' ear the bite. Next day there were if lymphatic congestion on the thigh. .1 -oe-jerku were normal, showing that Lt , -ison had not affected the spinal cord. On lue fourth day the skin of the leg and thigh was normal, but on the place Avhere the bite had been given the skin felt numb aud dead. He left the hospital on the fifth day. He was not dangerously ill, but was sufficiently bad for "the country doctor who attended him to sand him to a hospital. For the first 24 hofirs he was in great pain, and was giA*en morphia 'o relieve it. The proper cour&c would have been to' dean the bite with pure carbolic acid, but Dr Martin did not do that, as he wished to observe the case, and ha let it have its own way at fust. The treatment lie gave A\.a.s an antiseptic dressing of mercury ; and bi omide of potash given internally, to soothe the irritable nerves on .the 6kin. On the second day. lead and opium fomentations were applied to the leg and thigh. Mr Martin's second patient Avas a Maori boy. about 15 years of age. He avss bitten on the upper part of the right arm. He Buffered from a severe headache, great pain OA"er the area of the bite, and inflammation, of the cellular tissue. There Aras no vomiting, and he did not collapse. He had completely recovered on the third day. Dr Martin says that if he had not knoAvn that the man Avas suffering fiom a katipo's bite he would ltaA-o said that the trouble arose from a poi«on<xl wound, causing local inflammation, s-omewhat simi!?r to the 6tine of a b&e. He has not- 6een any cases of children that have been bitten, but he nays that a Aveaklv child would be very ill, suffering from convulsions and tremors. His observations sliow that the

i>if«"iß"~a small, pointed" wound, deeply congested. In hie first case it caused very slight bleeding, and perhaps not more than a drop of blood. The poison doeiS not operate like aconite or other vegetable poisons of that class ; it does not" cause numbness, but intense irritation, which in the first case was confined to the sensory nerves only. He adds that if sensation in a limb w«re completely abolished, there would be some motor nerve trouble, and the patient would limp. He says that there is no specific treatment, but that the remedies applied should be those that "would simply meet the symptoms, relieving the pain, subduing the nerve excitement, stimulating the heart if it shows any weakness, and •so on.

Dr Martin's patients seero to have got. off fairly lightly. This is accounted for, probably, by their age and strength, and general good health. The bite is generally followed by great pain, lassitude and nervous depression. In the case of a stout strong man bitten near Auckland some years ago, the poison, when it became absorbed in the circulation, affected the' 'heart, brain, and nervous system, almost Gausing. a faint. Maoris state that large numbers of their children have succumbed to the effects of the bite. A European boy, who was bitten at Maketu, in the Bay of Plenfcv, -was ill for three months^ 3>ef ore he rallied, and three more months before he recovered ; and a Maon. eirl, bitfen at Waihi, near the same place, died after six weeks' suffering.