Drums

Warm summer weather means more insects — along with more people trying to enjoy the outdoors while avoiding pesky pests. However, some are more than a mere nuisance. Although bugs are a crucial part of the ecosystem, some small creepy crawlers pose big threats to humans and animals.

When you think of deathly, dangerous bugs, it's a good bet you think of some myth-like monster in some far-flung locale. You know, the Tse Tse fly in Tanzania, or the wandering spider in Brazil. It might feel like the United States is an insect-free oasis—at least compared to Australia, where spiders literally fall like raindrops, by the thousands, in a terrifying phenomenon aptly dubbed, "spider rain." But the unfortunate reality is that dangerous insects are likely lurking in your own backyard.

In the case of Hawley Crippen, the unusual poison choice, Hyoscine, led investigators to question the validity of the remains. It seemed unusual for the toxicologist to check immediately for the common alkaloids before looking for more common poisons. But what are the more common poisons used in murders?

As far as the murder of individuals is concerned there are relatively few agents that have been used and of course there is no way of knowing how many people have been deliberately killed this way because no doubt many such deaths were attributed to natural causes.

Precious minerals make the modern world go 'round—they're used in everything from circuit boards to tableware. They're also some of the most toxic materials known to science, and excavating them has proved so dangerous over the years, some have been phased out of industrial production altogether. 

While dinosaurs get all the attention, discover why prehistoric creatures like the terror bird and the Titanoboa are just as terrifying.

For about 135 million years, dinosaurs were the undisputed rulers of the Earth. And they might still have been today if not for the cataclysmic comet that struck Earth some 65 million years ago. However, our planet has been around for a lot longer than the dinosaurs’ reign and, as it turns out, nature has been quite adept at producing nightmare-inducing monsters other than dinosaurs.

On land during the day, we humans rule. Or at least we're considered top predators, and with our feet on the ground, we're in our element. In the sea, sans a boat, forget about it. We're too slow, too encumbered with gear, and often too stupid to be much more than prey. What's to worry about down there? Plenty!

Yes, this list is subjective, but it's based on research aimed at finding the creatures of the deep that conjure the most compelling combination of frightening personas, actual aggression and/or real pain or death to humans. More often than not, pain and death from sea creatures is avoidable, especially in the case of two on this list that inflict most of their damage in home aquariums and restaurants.