River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1894-03-01
sTowAwAYs ON FRUIT SHIPS.
Where Nsturalists May Find Specimens
of Tropical Insects

of Tropical Insects
Throughout the year, but particular
ly at this season, when the city is de-
pendent upon the tropics for its fruit
supply, almost every steamer entering
this port brings a number OF many
footed stowaways The steamers which
bring the most of these stowaways are
those that come from the West Indies
and Central America, loaded with ban
anas, and naturalist will always be
rewarded by visit to any of the piers
where these vessels unload. As bunch
after bunch of bananas is handed out
from the hold to be packed away in
large open vans, a lizard often drops
out and can be easily captured. These
are of every color. many of them very
beautiful, and all perfectly harmless
Sometimes small tropical moth fiut-
tiers out, and careful observer will
find many sorts of ants, from greas
black fellows that have a savage bite
to the tiniest of the species
Very unwelcome visitors are cent?
pedes and scorpions, that frequently
find a shelter in the large green
punches, and many of the men who
handle the fruit have been stung
by those noxious insects. The
sting of the scorpion seems instantly
to paralyze the limb struck, and
causes most acute pain and much
swelling. The centipede, whose every
leg is armed with sting that leaves
its poison behind as il hurries over the
human skin, leaves trail of pain be-
hind it which is quite as acute as that
caused by the scorpion, The best rem
edy for these stings is strong spirits of
ammonia, which should be at once
rubbed into the skin vigorously. Now
and then a small snake makes his APP
pearance from among the fruit, and
always causes panic among the peo-
pie near by. These are Away of the
tree variety, and are generally harm
less, but they receive no favor and are
soon battered into jelly. Spiders are
among the most common of these trop-
ical immigrants, and among these the
hairy-legged tarantula is, very right
ly, the most dreaded. One that was cap
tured recently covered nearly as much
ground as a mans hand. The ugly
customer lived for several weeks in
confinement. 1t was fed on raw meat,
but was particularly fond of cock
reaches The other spiders that come
on the fruit ships are harmless, and al
most all of them are beautifully marked
and are priced by naturalists.
Various species of beetles can be oft
en- found on these ships, from the giant
elephant to some not much larger than
pins head. Among this class of in
sects the naturalist will occasionally
find rare species that will repay him
for many hours spent ON the windy
piers. Not uncommon visitors are the
tree-frogs, little green and brown fell
lows that could give Mark Twain's
jumping frog points and then beat him
out of sight. So nimble are these lit
tie batrachians that it is hard work to
catch them If caught they should be
let loose in greenhouse, where they
do wonderfully well, and do much good
in killing parasites. For it's size, the
tree-frog can croak louder than any
other member of the loud voiced fam
lily,
Timber-laden vessels from the tropics
are always worth a visit Scorpions
and centipedes are common upon them.
and generally the visitor is rewarded
by finding many beetles, and sometimes
the chrysalis OF some tropical butterfly
or moth may be met with, which, if
kept in warm place, will hatch and
give the collector perfect specimen of
an insect he little dreamed of ever pos
sessing. Among the wood, too, may
often be found the nests of the mason
wasp. If these are broken open and
the grub is not full grown, one is sure
to find several kinds of small spiders
that the mother wasp had stuug into
insensibility and placed in the cell for
food for her progeny.-N. Y. Times