Figures that not only would we get our first snow of the winter the day after the Renslows arrive, but Sonja and I encounter our first live scorpion while on a walk with Sarah, Becca and Hannah out behind our house!
Now, considering the company we were with at the time, you might have expected a fair bit of drama...ie, screaming, running, dancing around like a crazy person. But surprisingly enough, while most of them stayed well back, they were more intrigued by it than anything else. In fact, Hannah was so fascinated by it we had to actually keep her from getting too close. When we first saw it I had neglected to bring my camera with me, so I had to go back to get it. Hannah was the only one brave enough to join me on the return trip. Figures that the five-year old is the bravest of the bunch.
In case you're wondering, this is a
stripe-tail scorpion. Their venom isn't necessarily that strong, and probably wouldn't feel much worse than getting stung by a wasp. They're also the most common scorpions in Arizona. Much more so than the infamous bark scorpion, which is the most venomous species in North America. So there it is. Our first scorpion. I guess they actually do exist.
Now, considering the company we were with at the time, you might have expected a fair bit of drama...ie, screaming, running, dancing around like a crazy person. But surprisingly enough, while most of them stayed well back, they were more intrigued by it than anything else. In fact, Hannah was so fascinated by it we had to actually keep her from getting too close. When we first saw it I had neglected to bring my camera with me, so I had to go back to get it. Hannah was the only one brave enough to join me on the return trip. Figures that the five-year old is the bravest of the bunch.
In case you're wondering, this is a stripe-tail scorpion. Their venom isn't necessarily that strong, and probably wouldn't feel much worse than getting stung by a wasp. They're also the most common scorpions in Arizona. Much more so than the infamous bark scorpion, which is the most venomous species in North America. So there it is. Our first scorpion. I guess they actually do exist.
2 comments:
These give me the willies but I find I can't pull myself away from them when I see them in the wild.
Here's the stuff of bad dreams. I was managing an event at the Biltmore in Phoenix. Scorpions like to crawl in the laundry baskets, apparently. One of our female guests rolled over in the night and got stung - yep down there. And her husband sued the hotel. I guess he had stinger envy. True story.
Yeah, I'd say that story ranks pretty high on the creep-out scale. Although my former boss delighted in telling me horror stories about lifting up her pillow one evening before bed "on a whim" and discovering a 2" bark scorpion nestled underneath.
I think she said it took her another two weeks before she would sleep in her bed after that.
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