I've learned not to tempt fate as well, but I admit that I didn't do so by specifically wiggling my fingers in front of any fish's mouth. I've been bitten a few times by toothy fish, usually while fishing, so I just consider the experience transferable to all other instances where a fish's teeth and part of my anatomy are in closer proximity than seems advisable.
You folks should check out a show on TV called "Kings of Pain". It follows the adventures of a couple of fellows who travel the world with the specific purpose of being bitten, stung, pinched or otherwise mutilated by assorted creepy crawlies that a sane person would know enough to avoid. They then rate the critters' danger potential in several areas: intensity of pain, duration of pain, actual damage, etc.
They've experimented with tarantulas, giant wasps, giant scorpions, assorted insects that utilize chemical weapons, snakes, monitor lizards, stonefish, lionfish, and numerous others. They dramatize it quite a bit, naturally; I've been hit by a few of those same critters at various points in my life...but not on purpose!...and most of them were much less traumatic than these guys make them out to be.
Some of them, however, are downright terrifying. Last night one of the contestants was the Orange Baboon Tarantula, commonly referred to as OBT...but that stands for Orange Bitey Thing! The spider moved like lightning, can apparently jump several feet in an eyeblink, and has no sense of humour whatsoever....and the pain associated with the bite, which can continue for days, weeks, or even years!...well, let's just say that there is not enough money in the world for me to try that stunt.
Later this season, one of the critters they will be inviting to mutilate them is the Electric Eel; they showed a brief glimpse of one of them reaching down into a tank containing an EE in the 3-4 foot range. I can't wait!
You folks should check out a show on TV called "Kings of Pain". It follows the adventures of a couple of fellows who travel the world with the specific purpose of being bitten, stung, pinched or otherwise mutilated by assorted creepy crawlies that a sane person would know enough to avoid. They then rate the critters' danger potential in several areas: intensity of pain, duration of pain, actual damage, etc.
They've experimented with tarantulas, giant wasps, giant scorpions, assorted insects that utilize chemical weapons, snakes, monitor lizards, stonefish, lionfish, and numerous others. They dramatize it quite a bit, naturally; I've been hit by a few of those same critters at various points in my life...but not on purpose!...and most of them were much less traumatic than these guys make them out to be.
Some of them, however, are downright terrifying. Last night one of the contestants was the Orange Baboon Tarantula, commonly referred to as OBT...but that stands for Orange Bitey Thing! The spider moved like lightning, can apparently jump several feet in an eyeblink, and has no sense of humour whatsoever....and the pain associated with the bite, which can continue for days, weeks, or even years!...well, let's just say that there is not enough money in the world for me to try that stunt.
Later this season, one of the critters they will be inviting to mutilate them is the Electric Eel; they showed a brief glimpse of one of them reaching down into a tank containing an EE in the 3-4 foot range. I can't wait!
