Scorpions Sorpionida Centruroides
Appearance:
1.5 – 2 3/4 inches in length. Dark brown to tan, often striped with greenish yellow along the back. Abdomen is slender, constricted at each segment, pale or dark depending on the species.
Habitat:
Most scorpions are active at night. During the day they hide under dark crevices, under bark, stones, and litter on the ground. In houses, they are most often found in undisturbed areas such as closets, seldom-used shoes, or folded clothing.
Food:
Small, soft bodied insects and spiders. They will eat other species of scorpions and even small individuals of their own species. Small insects are eaten immediately, but larger prey are stung and eaten after they cease to struggle.
Life Cycle:
Female keeps eggs in sac, then carries hatchlings on back until they can fend for themselves. Male uses pincers to pull female on top of him to mate.
General Information:
They have poor eyesight, so do not stalk or chase prey, but lie in waiting to grab it with their pincers. Most species which enter houses are not very poisonous, their stings being comparable to those of bees or wasp. However, certain species in Arizona and New Mexico can be dangerous, such as the Centruroides gertschi Stahnke and Centruroides sculpteratus Ewing, which can reach lengths of 2 to 3 inches.
