Weever
Encyclopedia
Weevers are nine species of fish
of family Trachinidae, order Perciformes
. They are long (up to 37 cm), mainly brown and have poisonous spines on their first dorsal fin
and gill
s. During the day, weevers bury themselves in sand, just showing their eyes, and snatch prey as it comes past, which consists of shrimp
s and small fish. Weevers are unusual in not having a swim bladder as do most bony fishes and as a result sink as soon as they stop actively swimming. With the exception of T. cornutus from the south-east Pacific, all species in this family are restricted to the eastern Atlantic (including the Mediterranean).
This fish is used in the recipe for bouillabaisse
.
Weevers are sometimes erroneously called 'weaver fish', although the word is unrelated. In fact, the word 'weever' is believed to derive from the Old French
word 'wivre', meaning serpent
or dragon
, from the Latin 'viper
a'. It is sometimes also known as the viperfish, although it is not related to the viperfish
proper.
In Australia
, sand perches of the family Mugiloididae are known as weevers.
:
Stings are most common in the hours before and after low tide
(especially at springs) so one possible precaution is to avoid bathing or paddling at these times. They also increase in frequency during the summer (to a maximum in August) but this is probably the result of the greater number of bathers.
The lesser weever can be found from the southern North Sea
to the Mediterranean
and is common around the south coast of the United Kingdom
and Ireland
, the Atlantic coast of France
and Spain
, and the northern coast of the Mediterranean. The high number of bathers found on popular tourist beaches in these areas means that stings are common although individual chances of being stung are low. The South Wales Evening Post
stated (on 8 August 2000) that around 40 weever stings are recorded in the Swansea
and Gower
area every year however many victims will not seek medical assistance and go uncounted.
Weever stings have been known to penetrate wet suit boots even through a rubber
sole (if thin) and it is recommended that bathers and surfers wear sandals, "jelly shoes
" or wetsuit boots with a relatively hard sole and avoid sitting or "rolling" in the shallows.
(or bee
) sting".
The following symptoms may occur following a weever sting:
Common/minor symptoms:
Severe pain, itching, swelling
, heat
, redness, numbness, tingling
, nausea
, vomiting
, joint aches, headaches, abdominal cramps, lightheadedness
, increased urination
and tremors.
Rare/severe symptoms:
Abnormal heart
rhythms, weakness
, shortness of breath, seizure
s, decreased blood pressure
, gangrene
and tissue degeneration, unconsciousness.
HEALING
The venom is a type of protein and is heat labile. This means that the only treatment is to put the effected limb in water as hot as the victim can stand without causing scalding. (In tests, the protein denatured above 40°C.) This is meant to bring about rapid and permanent relief.
First Aid
treatment consists of immersing the affected area in hot water (as hot as the victim can bear) which will accelerate denaturation
of the protein
based venom
. The use of hot water will reduce the pain felt by the victim after a few minutes. Usual experience is that the pain then fades within ten to twenty minutes, as the water cools. Folklore
often suggests the addition of substances to the hot water including urine
, vinegar
and Epsom salts but this is of limited (if any) value. Heat should be applied for at least 15 minutes but, as a rule of thumb: the longer the delay (before heat is applied) the longer the treatment should be continued. Once the pain has eased the injury should be checked for the remains of broken spines and any found need to be removed. Over the counter analgesic
s such as aspirin
or ibuprofen
may be of assistance in management of pain and can also reduce edema
(Caution see Aspirin Warnings).
Medical advice should be sought if any of the symptoms listed above as Rare/Severe are observed, if swelling spreads beyond the immediate area of injury (e.g. from hand to arm), if symptoms persist or if any other factor causes concern. Medical treatment consists of symptom management, analgesia (often with opiate
s) and the same heat treatment as for first aid - more systemic treatment using histamine antagonist
s has been found effective.
Jonathan Wickings died after being stung by an unknown sea creature off the coast of Majorca in 1998. This was reported as a possible weever sting although he was not in contact with the seabed and some witnesses reported seeing a "snake" in the water.
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
of family Trachinidae, order Perciformes
Perciformes
The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, is one of the largest orders of vertebrates, containing about 40% of all bony fish. Perciformes means perch-like. They belong to the class of ray-finned fish and comprise over 7,000 species found in almost all aquatic environments...
. They are long (up to 37 cm), mainly brown and have poisonous spines on their first dorsal fin
Dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...
and gill
Gill
A gill is a respiratory organ found in many aquatic organisms that extracts dissolved oxygen from water, afterward excreting carbon dioxide. The gills of some species such as hermit crabs have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are kept moist...
s. During the day, weevers bury themselves in sand, just showing their eyes, and snatch prey as it comes past, which consists of shrimp
Shrimp
Shrimp are swimming, decapod crustaceans classified in the infraorder Caridea, found widely around the world in both fresh and salt water. Adult shrimp are filter feeding benthic animals living close to the bottom. They can live in schools and can swim rapidly backwards. Shrimp are an important...
s and small fish. Weevers are unusual in not having a swim bladder as do most bony fishes and as a result sink as soon as they stop actively swimming. With the exception of T. cornutus from the south-east Pacific, all species in this family are restricted to the eastern Atlantic (including the Mediterranean).
This fish is used in the recipe for bouillabaisse
Bouillabaisse
Bouillabaisse is a seafood soup made with various kinds of cooked fish and shellfish and vegetables, flavored with a variety of herbs and spices such as garlic, orange peel, basil, bay leaf, fennel and saffron. Bouillabaisse is a traditional Provençal fish stew originating from the port city of...
.
Weevers are sometimes erroneously called 'weaver fish', although the word is unrelated. In fact, the word 'weever' is believed to derive from the Old French
Old French
Old French was the Romance dialect continuum spoken in territories that span roughly the northern half of modern France and parts of modern Belgium and Switzerland from the 9th century to the 14th century...
word 'wivre', meaning serpent
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
or dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
, from the Latin 'viper
Viperidae
The Viperidae are a family of venomous snakes found all over the world, except in Antarctica, Australia, Ireland, Madagascar, Hawaii, various other isolated islands, and above the Arctic Circle. All have relatively long, hinged fangs that permit deep penetration and injection of venom. Four...
a'. It is sometimes also known as the viperfish, although it is not related to the viperfish
Viperfish
A viperfish is a saltwater fish in the genus Chauliodus, with long, needle-like teeth and hinged lower jaws. They grow to lengths of 30 to 60 cm . Viperfish stay near lower depths in the daytime and shallow at night. Viperfish mainly stay in tropical and temperate waters...
proper.
In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, sand perches of the family Mugiloididae are known as weevers.
Species
There are nine species in two generaGenus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
:
- Genus Echiichthys
- Lesser weeverLesser WeeverThe lesser weever, Echiichthys vipera, is a hazardous weever-fish of the family Trachinidae, in the order Perciformes, and the class Actinopterygii. It is generally found on the sandy seabeds of the open sea, near the shore. Lesser weevers are sometimes disturbed by swimmers, and may sting them badly...
, Echiichthys vipera (CuvierGeorges CuvierGeorges Chrétien Léopold Dagobert Cuvier or Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric Cuvier , known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist...
, 1829).
- Lesser weever
- Genus TrachinusTrachinusTrachinus is a genus of weevers, order Perciformes. Consists of next species:** Spotted weever, Trachinus araneus Cuvier, 1829.** Guinean weever, Trachinus armatus Bleeker, 1861.** Sailfin weever, Trachinus collignoni Roux, 1957....
- Spotted weeverSpotted weeverThe spotted weever, Trachinus araneus, is a fish of the Trachinidae family, Perciformes order, and Actinopterygii class.It is up to 45 cm long, brown and yellow on the head and back, paler below with darker spots along the sides. The shape of its body is long and laterally flattened, the mouth...
, Trachinus araneus CuvierGeorges CuvierGeorges Chrétien Léopold Dagobert Cuvier or Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric Cuvier , known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist...
, 1829. - Guinean weeverGuinean weeverThe Guinean weever, Trachinus armatus, is a fish of the Trachinidae family, Perciformes order, and Actinopterygii class. Widespread in the Eastern Atlantic along the coasts of Africa from Mauritania to Angola. Marine tropical demersal fish, up to 35 cm length.- References :*...
, Trachinus armatus BleekerPieter BleekerPieter Bleeker was a Dutch medical doctor and ichthyologist, famous for his work on the fishes of East Asia – Atlas Ichthyologique des Orientales Neerlandaises – which was published 1862–1877....
, 1861. - Sailfin weever, Trachinus collignoni Roux, 1957.
- Trachinus cornutus Guichenot, 1848.
- Greater weeverGreater weeverThe greater weever, Trachinus draco, is a weever fish of the family Trachinidae. It is less common than the lesser weever.- Description :...
, Trachinus draco LinnaeusCarolus LinnaeusCarl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
, 1758. - Striped weever, Trachinus lineolatus Fischer, 1885.
- Cape Verde weever, Trachinus pellegrini Cadenat, 1937.
- Starry weeverStarry weeverThe starry weever, Trachinus araneus, is a fish of the Trachinidae family, Perciformes order, and Actinopterygii class. Widespread in the Eastern Atlantic from Gibraltar to the Gulf of Guinea, probably further south; known from the Mediterranean Sea. Marine subtropical fish, up to 50 cm length....
, Trachinus radiatus CuvierGeorges CuvierGeorges Chrétien Léopold Dagobert Cuvier or Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric Cuvier , known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist...
, 1829.
- Spotted weever
Causes, frequency and prevention
Most human stings are inflicted by the lesser weever which habitually remains buried in sandy areas of shallow water and is thus more likely to come into contact with bathers than other species (such as the greater weever, which prefers deeper water), stings from other species are generally limited to anglers and commercial fishermen. Even very shallow water (sometimes little more than damp sand) may harbour lesser weevers. The vast majority of injuries occur to the foot and are the result of stepping on buried fish, other common sites of injury are the hands and buttocks.Stings are most common in the hours before and after low tide
Tide
Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the moon and the sun and the rotation of the Earth....
(especially at springs) so one possible precaution is to avoid bathing or paddling at these times. They also increase in frequency during the summer (to a maximum in August) but this is probably the result of the greater number of bathers.
The lesser weever can be found from the southern North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
to the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
and is common around the south coast of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, the Atlantic coast of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and the northern coast of the Mediterranean. The high number of bathers found on popular tourist beaches in these areas means that stings are common although individual chances of being stung are low. The South Wales Evening Post
South Wales Evening Post
The South Wales Evening Post is a tabloid daily newspaper that distributed in South West Wales. The paper has three daily editions - Swansea, Neath and Port Talbot and Carmarthenshire and is published by South West Wales Publications, part of the Northcliffe Media group. The current editor is...
stated (on 8 August 2000) that around 40 weever stings are recorded in the Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
and Gower
Gower Peninsula
Gower or the Gower Peninsula is a peninsula in south Wales, jutting from the coast into the Bristol Channel, and administratively part of the City and County of Swansea. Locally it is known as "Gower"...
area every year however many victims will not seek medical assistance and go uncounted.
Weever stings have been known to penetrate wet suit boots even through a rubber
Rubber
Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...
sole (if thin) and it is recommended that bathers and surfers wear sandals, "jelly shoes
Jelly shoes
Jelly shoes or jellies are shoes made of PVC plastic. Jelly shoes come in a large variety of brands and colors and the material is frequently infused with glitter. Its name refers to the semi-transparent materials with a jelly-like sheen. The shoes became a fad in the mid 1980s, when a pair could...
" or wetsuit boots with a relatively hard sole and avoid sitting or "rolling" in the shallows.
Symptoms
At first many victims believe they have simply scratched them-self on a sharp stone or shell, although this barely hurts, significant pain begins about 2–3 minutes after being stung. Weever stings cause severe pain, common descriptions from victims are "extremely painful" and "much worse than a waspWasp
The term wasp is typically defined as any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant. Almost every pest insect species has at least one wasp species that preys upon it or parasitizes it, making wasps critically important in natural control of their...
(or bee
Bee
Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
) sting".
The following symptoms may occur following a weever sting:
Common/minor symptoms:
Severe pain, itching, swelling
Swelling
Swelling , is the enlargement of tissue.Swelling can also mean:*Die swell, the increase of volume of material due to absorption of a solvent, common for plastic polymers*Neutron-induced swelling caused by neutron radiation....
, heat
Heat
In physics and thermodynamics, heat is energy transferred from one body, region, or thermodynamic system to another due to thermal contact or thermal radiation when the systems are at different temperatures. It is often described as one of the fundamental processes of energy transfer between...
, redness, numbness, tingling
Tingling
Tingling or Tili was a tribe union west of China before 300 BC. After c.300BC they were called tieloe or kauko. The avars was the tieloe tribe union most west members....
, nausea
Nausea
Nausea , is a sensation of unease and discomfort in the upper stomach with an involuntary urge to vomit. It often, but not always, precedes vomiting...
, vomiting
Vomiting
Vomiting is the forceful expulsion of the contents of one's stomach through the mouth and sometimes the nose...
, joint aches, headaches, abdominal cramps, lightheadedness
Lightheadedness
Light-headedness is a common and often unpleasant sensation of dizziness and/or feeling that one may be about to faint, which may be transient, recurrent, or occasionally chronic. In some cases, the individual may feel as though his or her head is weightless. The individual may also feel as...
, increased urination
Urination
Urination, also known as micturition, voiding, peeing, weeing, pissing, and more rarely, emiction, is the ejection of urine from the urinary bladder through the urethra to the outside of the body. In healthy humans the process of urination is under voluntary control...
and tremors.
Rare/severe symptoms:
Abnormal heart
Heart
The heart is a myogenic muscular organ found in all animals with a circulatory system , that is responsible for pumping blood throughout the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions...
rhythms, weakness
Weakness
Weakness is a symptom represented, medically, by a number of different conditions, including: lack of muscle strength, malaise, dizziness, or fatigue. The causes are many and can be divided into conditions that have true or perceived muscle weakness. True muscle weakness is a primary symptom of a...
, shortness of breath, seizure
Seizure
An epileptic seizure, occasionally referred to as a fit, is defined as a transient symptom of "abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain". The outward effect can be as dramatic as a wild thrashing movement or as mild as a brief loss of awareness...
s, decreased blood pressure
Blood pressure
Blood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies...
, gangrene
Gangrene
Gangrene is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition that arises when a considerable mass of body tissue dies . This may occur after an injury or infection, or in people suffering from any chronic health problem affecting blood circulation. The primary cause of gangrene is reduced blood...
and tissue degeneration, unconsciousness.
HEALING
The venom is a type of protein and is heat labile. This means that the only treatment is to put the effected limb in water as hot as the victim can stand without causing scalding. (In tests, the protein denatured above 40°C.) This is meant to bring about rapid and permanent relief.
Treatment
Although extremely unpleasant, weever stings are not generally dangerous and the pain will ease considerably within a few hours even if untreated. Complete recovery may take a week or more; in a few cases victims have reported swelling and/or stiffness persisting for months after envenomation.First Aid
First aid
First aid is the provision of initial care for an illness or injury. It is usually performed by non-expert, but trained personnel to a sick or injured person until definitive medical treatment can be accessed. Certain self-limiting illnesses or minor injuries may not require further medical care...
treatment consists of immersing the affected area in hot water (as hot as the victim can bear) which will accelerate denaturation
Denaturation (biochemistry)
Denaturation is a process in which proteins or nucleic acids lose their tertiary structure and secondary structure by application of some external stress or compound, such as a strong acid or base, a concentrated inorganic salt, an organic solvent , or heat...
of the protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
based venom
Venom
Venom is the general term referring to any variety of toxins used by certain types of animals that inject it into their victims by the means of a bite or a sting...
. The use of hot water will reduce the pain felt by the victim after a few minutes. Usual experience is that the pain then fades within ten to twenty minutes, as the water cools. Folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
often suggests the addition of substances to the hot water including urine
Urine
Urine is a typically sterile liquid by-product of the body that is secreted by the kidneys through a process called urination and excreted through the urethra. Cellular metabolism generates numerous by-products, many rich in nitrogen, that require elimination from the bloodstream...
, vinegar
Vinegar
Vinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional...
and Epsom salts but this is of limited (if any) value. Heat should be applied for at least 15 minutes but, as a rule of thumb: the longer the delay (before heat is applied) the longer the treatment should be continued. Once the pain has eased the injury should be checked for the remains of broken spines and any found need to be removed. Over the counter analgesic
Analgesic
An analgesic is any member of the group of drugs used to relieve pain . The word analgesic derives from Greek an- and algos ....
s such as aspirin
Aspirin
Aspirin , also known as acetylsalicylic acid , is a salicylate drug, often used as an analgesic to relieve minor aches and pains, as an antipyretic to reduce fever, and as an anti-inflammatory medication. It was discovered by Arthur Eichengrun, a chemist with the German company Bayer...
or ibuprofen
Ibuprofen
Ibuprofen is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug used for relief of symptoms of arthritis, fever, as an analgesic , especially where there is an inflammatory component, and dysmenorrhea....
may be of assistance in management of pain and can also reduce edema
Edema
Edema or oedema ; both words from the Greek , oídēma "swelling"), formerly known as dropsy or hydropsy, is an abnormal accumulation of fluid beneath the skin or in one or more cavities of the body that produces swelling...
(Caution see Aspirin Warnings).
Medical advice should be sought if any of the symptoms listed above as Rare/Severe are observed, if swelling spreads beyond the immediate area of injury (e.g. from hand to arm), if symptoms persist or if any other factor causes concern. Medical treatment consists of symptom management, analgesia (often with opiate
Opiate
In medicine, the term opiate describes any of the narcotic opioid alkaloids found as natural products in the opium poppy plant.-Overview:Opiates are so named because they are constituents or derivatives of constituents found in opium, which is processed from the latex sap of the opium poppy,...
s) and the same heat treatment as for first aid - more systemic treatment using histamine antagonist
Histamine antagonist
A histamine antagonist, commonly referred to as antihistamine, is a pharmaceutical drug that inhibits action of histamine by blocking it from attaching to histamine receptors.- Clinical effects :...
s has been found effective.
Fatalities
The only recorded death in the UK occurred in 1927, when a fisherman off Dungeness suffered multiple stings. There is some suspicion that the victim may have died of other medical causes exacerbated by the stings.Jonathan Wickings died after being stung by an unknown sea creature off the coast of Majorca in 1998. This was reported as a possible weever sting although he was not in contact with the seabed and some witnesses reported seeing a "snake" in the water.