Classification and Description 3.
Reported Cases of Poisonous Arachnid Bites 7.
When the word insect is thought of or heard, most people usually have a mental picture of such a thing as a fly or beetle. These bugs are not particularly liked by the general population, but if that is the case, people often just turn up their noses and step on or swat at the disgusting critter. Either way, these bugs are seldom thought of as actually being dangerous. On the other hand, when people think about spiders, they imagine some poisonous creature that is threatening to their very existence. The truth is that approximately 95% of the time there are nothing to fear whenever a spider or other arachnid is around. It is almost guaranteed that if someone is too close, the spiders will always be the ones who will try to get away first. However, there are certain species that are very dangerous, and the best idea is to just stay far away from them.
Classification and Description.
Although arachnids and insects are classified under the same phylum arthropod, there are several characteristics that set the class arachnida apart from the class insecta. The first and most obvious difference is that arachnids have eight legs and only two body segments. Insects have six legs and three body segments. The upper segment of arachnids, called the cephalothorax, contains the mouth, head, and six pairs of appendages. The first pair of appendages is either pincers or poison fangs. The second pair can also be used as pincers, but are usually feelers. The last two pairs are legs. The second segment, or abdomen, contains all the internal and external organs, such as the spinnerets found on spiders that allows them to produce silk. Quite possibly the most important feature of an arachnid is that it is the only family of the phylum Arthropoda that contains poison glands. These glands are what give arachnids such bad reputations, and why they make arachnids much more dangerous than the rest of the arthropods.