Centipede in Hawaii

Centipede in Hawaii: I Was Stung Today

Here’s a picture of an earlier culprit. In the latest round of the endless tale, I was bitten on my foot by a tenacious centipede last week. It happened at night on the computer, writing for Beat of Hawaii, when I felt something crawling on me. Unable to get it off my foot I started banging my foot on the floor. In the end, I ended up at the emergency room, unsure if I was suffering from a broken foot, a centipede bite or or a combination of both. In the end, good news, it was just a horrible centipede bite, the most painful of all those previously encountered.

Centipede in Hawaii: I Was Stung Today

Let me add that this post has been seen over 200,000 times since April of 2008, making it among the more popular on Beat of Hawaii. So obviously I’m not alone in this situation.

In the prior incident, I was making the bed and felt something large crawling on me. After a loud yelp and shake of my leg, this 7″ long centipede fell off me and quickly made its way across the room.

The centipede managed to sting me in the process. This Aloha hurts!

I’m careful to use perimeter insecticidal spray every few months in case one of these guys walks in. In our tropical Kauai environment, and will all of the recent Hawaii weather, however, it’s still possible for something like this to happen.

I always tell friends visiting the islands to check their bed linens at night and clothes for any unwelcome guests. This is especially true when staying in any rural environment, a private home or B&B.

How a centipede stings:

Centipede venom is injected by a pair of sharp, specialized, hollow legs located just behind the head, which are attached to muscular venom glands. The sting is considered comparable to that of a wasp. My opinion based on the latest encounter is that it can be worse.

What should you do if you get stung?

Wash the area first then apply ice to reduce swelling (although others suggest a hot compress, which didn’t work for me). Take ibuprofen or acetaminophen for pain and apply a topical antiseptic/antibiotic cream, followed by cortisone or other pain relief cream (if needed for pain and itching). Most stings are self-resolving. Others have suggested sting kits as well as ammonia.

Where you’ll find centipedes:

These nocturnal, carnivorous arthropods are usually found outdoors in moist areas, under leaves, stones, bark and compost. When disturbed, centipedes run away quickly.

In a house, condo or even the occasional hotel room, they will conceal themselves in things like bed linens, shoes, laundry baskets, boxes and under damp towels/clothing left on bathroom floors. They aren’t aggressive towards people, but will sting when threatened.

If anyone else is a member of the “Stung by a Centipede Club,” feel free to share your experience.

16 thoughts on “Centipede in Hawaii: I Was Stung Today”

    1. Hi Linda,

      Repeated pounding with something hard like a shoe, brick or whatever works best (and is the least cruel). They are not easy to kill.

      Aloha.

      1
  1. My kids just woke me up in a panic, and they discovered a 6 inch centipede, man those things are ugly… we killed it (of course it put up a fight) and Now the kids dont want to go to bed its 2 a.m. Hopefully I wont ever be a member of the club, thats one Hawaiian experience that I dont need to have =)

  2. I joined the SBACC last year. I visited the Big Island and worked in a garden clearing brush. When I left for the mainland I placed my gardening clothes in a plastic bag. One week later at 3 Am in the morning I was awoken by something moving across my neck and shoulder heading down my left arm, when I realized something was crawling on me I felt the pain of a bite on my upper arm. When I got the light on It was a 7″ centipede. It had to have been in my gardening clothes and I brought it back in my baggage. Could not go back to sleep for the rest of the night!

  3. I’m not a member, but….. we had one in our condo that we stayed at in Kauai. It was about 8 inches long and really fat! It was in the over flow drain in the bathroom sink. He came crawling out when my husband was brushing his teeth. Thank goodness it wasn’t me that found it!

Comments are closed.

Scroll to Top