.
.
This column could include all the Florida creatures that are potentially deadly. Almost anything can be; like water, cars, bacteria, the sun, and even friends. It all depends on how we encounter them, understand them, or it's just luck. This area is famous for alligators, which scare some residents, but alligators attract tourists. This column will be limited to animals that carry chemical toxins for defense or to catch food and can be encountered in Southwest Florida. I'm not interested in animals that carry deadly parasites or bacteria. Excluded are sharks, panthers, alligators, mosquitoes, bees, fire ants, wild boar, and bears. That leaves snakes, spiders, jellyfish, and stingrays.
Eastern coral snakes and some pit vipers call Florida home. The coral snake has red, black, and yellow stripes and prefers woods and swamps. Remember: "Red touches yellow, you're a dead fellow”. Pit Vipers are born alive. Water moccasins (aka cottonmouths) are large, dark in color, and found near fresh water. The Southern Copperhead is small, only three feet long, and will flee or "freeze" rather than attack. They are tan with triangular markings. Eastern diamondback rattlesnakes, common in Florida, have black, red, yellow, and green diamond patterns. It's the largest rattlesnake species and one of the most venomous. One measured 7.8 feet long and weighed 34 pounds. Pigmy rattlesnakes are a small species found in all parts of Florida, with adults usually reaching two feet in length. It makes a buzzing sound that can only be heard when it's close. They live in burrows dug by rodents or gopher tortoises.
Two species of venomous spiders live in Florida. The female black widow is small and easy to spot with a bright red hourglass pattern on its back. The brown recluse has a violin-shaped mark on its back. It earned its name because of its tendency to hide. Most bites are harmless, but skin necrosis can occur in 1/3 of cases.
Jellyfish. Portuguese Man-o-Wars and Box Jellyfish can be found and hopefully avoided in our coastal waters. If you see one, there are probably more. It is said that box jellyfish are the most poisonous marine creatures in the world and have claimed more lives than sharks in the last 50 years.
Stingrays can really hurt, too. Remember Steve Erwin. I had an encounter with a little one 25 years ago on Sanibel Island. I was walking across the three-inch-deep outlet of a tide pool and stepped on a baby ray, about six inches wide, hiding under the sand. It felt like a bee sting and I just walked away. Back on my beach lounge, I rested for half an hour when my foot started to burn. I had to go back to my room. A notebook provided by the resort listed all the available amenities, features, and a page about the "Sanibel Shuffle" that was recommended to avoid rays. It included what to do if you stepped on one. It sounded too easy, but I had to try it. It said to put your foot in a basin of the hottest water you can stand. I used the trash can and immediately the pain went away, permanently. It was amazing! As an unexpected bonus, the poison's steroids cured my heel spur pain for over a month.
Venomous creatures are one of nature's many ways of maintaining the population balance of a species. Remember that we humans are only part of the big picture. Recognize that every population must maintain its balance, or nature will do it for us. If we want to continue to increase our population beyond all reason, perhaps that is what space exploration will provide. Maybe that is why we have been given such powerful brains. Or maybe we are so smart that we develop artificial intelligence to do it for us. As of today, I think that is still fiction. Be observant. Enjoy the beauty of the different creatures you see, while keeping a third eye open for the beautiful things to avoid. And yes, we do live in paradise.
.