One expedition recorded 23 species of aquatic bugs, 29 species of dung beetle, 37 species of butterflies, 12 species termites, 6 species of rodents, and 25 species of frogs. But this staggering number of creatures does not even account for the potential distractions from land snails, snakes, and insects.

Land Snail Participants
Land snails exist in two groups; those which breathe with gills (Prosobranchia) and those which breathe with lungs (Pulmonata). Gilled snails have a single pair of tentacles with the eyes located at the base, and an operculum for sealing the generally rounded aperture. There are two sexes of these gilled land snails.

The great majority of land snails, however, are pulmonates. These snails have two sets of tentacles, with the eyes at the tip of the upper pair. They are hermaphroditic and lack an operculum. The 4-inch African land snail, Achatina fulica - with its radial brown flames - has been introduced as a food source throughout Southeast Asia and most of the islands in the Pacific. They feed on live vegetation and are a crop menace literally everywhere in the tropics.

Cyclophorus snails have a large (1 inch to 2.5 inches) depressed shell with a flammulate or spiral color pattern. According to early legends, if a cyclophorus snail crawls across a person's shadow, they drain one's blood and cause death.

Other species ranging from one-half inch to four inches are Amphidromus similis, Phaedusa borneensis, Lamellaxis gracilis, Leptopoma, Opisthostoma, Videna, Chloritis and Leptopoma undatum.

Slithering Snake Entrants
Some Malaysian snakes are non-poisonous, some are moderately poisonous, and some are extremely poisonous. While most are timid, some are remarkably aggressive. Some are only 3 feet long and weigh barely a pound while others are 30 feet long and exceed 250 pounds.

The common Green-spotted Paradise Tree Snake is only three feet long, rear-fanged and only mildly poisonous. It is also common to see a three-foot long green pit viper. The Gargantuan-Reticulated Python, the world's largest yet non-poisonous snake, lives near rivers, coiled on overhanging branches.

So which snakes are the most dangerous? The venomous snakes to be concerned about in Malaysia come in two varieties: vipers and Elapids. Vipers have large moveable fangs and inject hemotoxic venom that attacks muscles directly. This venom can cause swelling and hemorrhaging and is described as painful, but is rarely fatal in the quantities delivered by the local species.

Of the eight viper varieties reported to inhabit South East Asia, the Wagler's Pit Viper is most common. Its fixed fangs inject a highly toxic venom that attacks the central nervous system. They can be roughly separated into five families: sea snakes (22 species), coral snakes (4 species), Kraits (3 species), cobras (3 species) and the King Cobra.

The King Cobra is a totally separate beast from all other cobras, only sharing the exciting habit of flaring its hood and its classification as an Elapid. Sea snakes have the most potent venom of all snakes, and Eco-Challenge competitors may meet one of them when scuba diving on the water course.

Kraits and coral snakes are highly venomous but docile, preferring nocturnal activities, such as perhaps, meeting a team who may be traversing through the night. King Cobras, up to six meters long and as big around as a fire hose, have a mythical reputation. When they stand up to get a good perspective (and to intimidate visitors), they are nearly capable of looking a human directly in the eye. The King Cobra is able to deliver enough highly toxic venom to kill an elephant.

Black cobras also have extremely toxic venom, able to kill a human within an hour and put on a great show when aroused. In Malaysia, if there is to be a snake-encounter, it's more likely to be with one of these. It pops up out of nowhere, can be up to 7 or 8 feet long, has a head/hood the size of a badminton racket and makes a sound like someone stepped on Darth Vader's foot. Another trait worth noting is the somewhat alarming and disgusting ability of the Black Cobra to spit up to 2 meters. They aim for the eyes, the venom burns severely and can cause permanent blindness.

What are the chances of being bitten? Not much, unless one threatens a nest. Egg-laying season for Black Cobras is June through September in Malaysia. If it is hot and dry in May, they will be aroused early. Cobras are potentially aggressive during this breeding period.

According to Lee and Lim [1], in the ten years between 1960 and 1970, there were more than 50,000 snake bites of all types in Malaysia, but only 249 deaths. In other words, of people bitten, only one-half of one percent die from the poisonous bite. Half of those bites occurred in Kedah, Malaysia's rice bowl that has only 10 percent of the population, suggesting the most effective way to avoid snakebites is to stay out of the rice paddies.

Why? Because rodents eat rice, and snakes eat rodents. Barefooted humans stomping around in rice paddies are likely to get their toes caught in the wrong part of a link in the cobra-food chain.

What to do if Bitten
If you are bitten, apply a pressure bandage wrap like you would for a sprain. Venom moves through the body predominantly by the lymph channels, not the bloodstream. Venom molecules are normally too large to enter the blood stream in the bitten area so they are transferred via the lymph system to the chest area where they are then taken into the blood system.

You don't have to cut off the blood supply to the bitten area, but applying direct pressure in the manner described can reduce the circulation and keep the venom localized. An envenomed victim can survive quite a few hours in this state.

Fully immobilize the bitten limb with a splint and more bandages. This is a vital precaution, as the motion of the limb will pump venom around the system. Around Malaysia, "Naja Naja Sputatrix" means, "Was it black, or wasn't it?" One should know how to answer a question about what the snake's color, as it will impact treatment.

The Greater Malaysian Insect Community
Bugs not only bite, sting, burrow, and irritate, they carry some serious germs, as formerly noted in our discussion of the dreaded diseases spread by Malaysian mosquitos.

A high prevalence of tick infestation of the human ear canal currently appears to be unique to the Malaysian state of Kelantan. Nine species of parasitoids were found parasitizing the pupae of Filth Flies breeding in refuse dumps and poultry farms throughout peninsular Malaysia.

In a pediatric hospital in four wards, 104 cockroaches were caught, consisting of Periplaneta americana (67.3 percent), Blattella germanica (26 percent), P. brunnea (4.8 percent), and Supella longipalpa (1.9 percent). Bacteria were isolated from all cockroaches except three p. americana.

Many bacterial species were identified, including the pathogenic and potentially pathogenic species Shigella boydii, S. dysenteriae, Salmonella typhimurium, Klebseilla oxytoca, K. ozaena and Serratia marcescens. [2]

Cockroaches from two different housing areas with central sewerage or individual septic tanks in urban Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were examined. Six species of cockroaches were present; Periplaneta americana and Periplaneta brunnea were found in greater abundance. Seventeen species of bacteria were isolated and Escherichia coli and Klebsiella P. Pneumoniae were isolated in greatest numbers. [3]

Nine species of chiggers exist in Malaysia, one-inch long velvet ants, and Trombiculoid mites. Each offers the potential to hinder (for a moment) one's attempt to cross the 300-mile jungle course without an unpleasant diversion, slithering, crawling, and creeping along.

REFERENCES
[1]-Pat "Pigpen" Brunsdon's Mountain Biking in Malaysia: http://bikehash.freeservers.com/snakebite.html
[2]-Bacterial pathogens isolated from cockroaches trapped from paediatric wards in peninsular Malaysia. Oothuman P, Jeffery J, Aziz AH, Abu Bakar E, Jegathesan M, Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg 1989 Jan-Feb 83:1 133-5.
[3]-Cockroaches from urban human dwellings: isolation of bacterial pathogens and control. Vythilingam I, Jeffery J, Oothuman P, Abdul Razak AR, Sulaiman A, Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health 1997 Mar 28:1:218-22. You are hereby authorized permission to reprint the included document. We request the copyrighted material also include the author's home websites as emboldened below.