Page 22 - (DK) Danger! Open with Extreme Caution!

STINGERS

Alert! Intruders are on the prowl, armed with sharp
organs called stingers and extremely dangerous. Their
lethal weapons are capable of piercing the skin
of other animals to deliver venom—a toxic cocktail of
nerve poisons and cell destroyers. Some stings may
cause only momentary pain, but others are extremely
potent, causing excruciating agony or even death.

Portuguese man-of-war
With an air-filled, jellylike blue and pink
body topped with a pink-ridged crest,
this marine invertebrate trails very long
59-ft (18-m) tentacles behind it as it
floats on the surface. Do not attempt
to touch the tentacles as they contain
a poison that is powerful enough to
burn and blister your skin on contact.

Cone snail

They may move at a snail’s pace,
but these reef-dwelling gastropods
can pull a fast one. Cone snails shoot
a harpoonlike tooth from an extendable
“arm” into their chosen prey (often
a fish) and release hundreds of
toxins to paralyse it. Their sting
is deadly to humans, and there is
no known antivenin. Stay away!

Honeybee

When a bee stings, the barbs at the end
of its stinger catch in its victim’s skin.
The bee must leave its rear behind
as it exits, but that is not the end of
the pain: the stinger continues to
pump venom—a mix of 40 various
ingredients—for 10 minutes, and
a pheromone is released to alert
nearby bees to attack. Evade!

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