WMN Editors

Plants that Bite and Sting

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It is estimated that there are around 375,000 species of plants on our planet, of which 297,366 have been identified and named. There are about 260,000 flowering plants, (they have flowers and reproduce by pollination and seeds), and 15,000 bryophytes (they reproduce by spore production – liverworts, hornworts, and mosses).

Without plants life as we know it would not exist. This is because, through the process of photosynthesis, plants have the remarkable ability to combine carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O), using photons of energy from the sun, to form glucose. Glucose is how plants store energy. Animals consume the plants, extract and digest the stored sugars, carbohydrates, and starches, and use the stored energy to survive. These simple sugars, glucose and fructose, are the fuel that the engine of life utilizes to sustain and maintain itself.

ISSN-1059-6518

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Tapeworms

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March/April 2011  ISSN-1059-6518  Volume 24 Number 2

By Frank Hubbell, DO

Illustrations by T.B.R. Walsh

Cestoda-

Tapeworms:

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ANIMAL BITES AND THE RISK OF RABIES

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March/April 2011  ISSN-1059-6518  Volume 24 Number 2

By Frank Hubbell, DO

Animal Bites and the Risk of Rabies

You are leading an ecotourism trip in rural Central America. As your group is walking down a narrow dirt road leading to a mountain village, a dog comes out of a local farmhouse with his tale wagging, appearing quite friendly. Your co-leader leans over to greet the dog and is promptly bitten in the face. She has several puncture wounds on the left side of her face, which are relatively minor, and the bleeding it easily controlled. The question becomes: what are the risks of rabies and should you be concerned? The answer is a definite, YES!

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THE PERSONAL FIRST AID KIT AND BIVOUAC KIT:

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March/April 2011   ISSN-1059-6518  Volume 24 Number 2

By Frank Hubbell, DO

The Personal First Aid Kit

And Bivouac Kit:

Whenever you venture off into the wilderness, for any reason, taking you away from immediate help, it is essential to carry a few things with you that could make the difference in the event that someone were to become injured or benighted. Cell phones, GPS, and other modern devices have helped to let those out there in the modern world know that you are injured, sick, or lost, but their use may not facilitate getting you out any faster.

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