One biting bug that has not been mentioned, but could be the culprit Mark
encountered, is the creeping water bug (Naucoridae), also called "toe-biter"
or "gator flea." An attractive green oval-shaped bug, Pelocoris, is abundant
in hevaily vegetated, swampy waters of the eastern US. Because of its small
size, it sometimes escapes undetected (and unidentified) by its victim. In
1939, Edward T. Boardman wrote "It is much more pugnacious then it looks.
When picked up in the hand it will give a painful stinging bite. If trapped
inside one's clothes, it crawls along giving a succession of bites that
produces the vivid impression of a passing, red-hot branding iron."
[I may have posted this before - but believed it was appropriate - please
excuse any repetition]
>>I'm not exactly the authority on water bugs or spiders, but I know
some people who are really interested in them. I'd like to see a giant water
beetle in an aquarium, that would be interesting.<<
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
/"Unless stated otherwise, comments made on this list do not necessarily
/ reflect the beliefs or goals of the North American Native Fishes
/ Association"
/ This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes Association
/ nanfa_at_aquaria.net. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or get help, send the word
/ subscribe, unsubscribe, or help in the body (not subject) of an email to
/ nanfa-request_at_aquaria.net. For a digest version, send the command to
/ nanfa-digest-request_at_aquaria.net instead.
/ For more information about NANFA, visit our web page, http://www.nanfa.org