Fascinating facts about scorpions

Have you ever come across a scorpion while camping or hiking? Do you live in an area where you find them in your yard or inside of your home? Although these creatures look menacing, they are very rarely aggressive towards humans. They are nocturnal creatures,and they generally spend daytime hours hiding under rocks, woodpiles or other places where they feel safe and unseen. Scorpions will only attack humans if they feel threatened. Contrary to popular belief, most scorpion stings are not life threatening to human beings. There are only a few species in the world that have venom that can be deadly to us. Keep reading for some more interesting facts about these fascinating creatures.

They have been around for a very long time. Scorpion fossils have been unearthed that date clear back to 420 million years ago. According to fossil records, scorpions were one of the first marine species to venture onto dry land. As a point of reference, dinosaur fossils date back roughly 240 million years, so it is safe to say that scorpions are one of the oldest living things still in existence today.

They don’t go around looking for things to sting. It actually takes a great deal of energy for a scorpion to sting and inject its venom into something. Scorpions tend to try to kill their prey with their claws if possible and only resort to stinging as a last resort. They mainly feed on insects but have also been known to eat small lizards, snakes and mice. Their venom is complex and is meant to paralyze or kill their prey. There are over 1,500 known scorpion species. However, the venom from only about 25 of those species can be fatal to humans.

Scorpions are not insects. Scorpions are part of the arachnid family. They have eight legs and two big lobster like claws. Unlike most arachnids, scorpions don’t lay eggs and actually give birth to live young. The babies look just like much smaller versions of adult scorpions. They climb onto the mother’s back and rely on her for protection until they are big enough to venture out on their own.

They glow under UV light. Adult scorpions have fluorescent chemicals in their exoskeleton. These chemicals cause them to glow under ultraviolet light. It hasn’t been determined with certainty what, if any, evolutionary advantages this affords them, but it has been theorized that it might help them hunt, locate each other or possibly protect them from sunlight.

People often think of scorpions as a creature found only in the desert. However, they can be found almost everywhere (except Antarctica). If you encounter scorpions in your yard or your home, the best course of action is to contact Optimum Pest Control to help rid your property of these menacing looking creatures.