Facing my fears on a Scorpion Hunt

I’m not sure if I was getting to know my enemy or facing my fears, but when I heard White Tank Mountain Regional Park was doing their last scorpion hunt of the year after the sun went down on Friday, I had to check it out.  Not only did it sound cool - I mean, what's cooler than seeking out scorpions in the middle of the desert at night, but I would be learning something.  Plus, the event was only $6 - so can't beat that.

Since I moved to Phoenix, people have been freaking me out with their scorpion horror stories,  such as how they like to hide in your shoes and how you can’t put your dirty clothes on the floor as they will hide in there.  Others have told me how they stepped on one getting up at night and going to the bathroom and a woman at my hair salon said she found one in her bed. Ugh!!

I’ve heard that you shouldn’t squish them (not that I had planned to do that) as their babies will squirt out and then you’ll have a scorpion infestation in your home.  And I’ve heard that they are immune to bug spray, but they don’t climb.

My co-worker, who moved here from Texas and is new to the whole scorpion thing too, is convinced they are bees without wings – which you know must  be the premise of some sci-fi series somewhere or maybe Spider Man’s next villain.  He won't go anywhere near a place that could have scorpions (or bees). Of course, in Arizona scorpions are everywhere.

Now that I was totally paranoid and dumping out my shoes every morning, it was time to see what scorpions were all about.  Plus, it gave me an excuse to buy a black light flashlight, because apparently that’s what you need to see them at night.

What did I learn on my scorpion hunt? Lots of cool stuff like:

1.       Scorpions glow under black light, but it’s not the purple glow like they show on the flashlight package.  Instead, they glow whitish-green – like glow in the dark T-shirts.

2.       They can climb – at least the bark scorpions can.  These are the smaller scorpions that are brown.  These guys are usually hanging out in trees and hang upside down so they can sting their prey as they go under them. (Yes, I was itchy the whole time and no longer run or hangout under trees).

3.       They are fast, but not as fast as roaches.  This is good news as that means I can catch them or get something to trap them with.

4.       Their sting won’t kill you – unless you happen to be allergic or elderly.  They say less than 5 percent of people stung require medical attention, which is good to know. The larger black scorpions (Desert Hairy Scorpion) that tend to hang around under bushes and rocks have a sting that will hurt as much as a bee sting.  The little bark scorpions will hurt more.

So did I see any scorpions on my hunt?  Yup.  I saw over 30 in just a quarter of a mile.  I had no idea there would be so many and will never be able hike in Arizona without knowing they are there – and watching me from the bushes, trees and rocks.

Links:
Events at White Tank Mountain: http://www.maricopa.gov/parks/white_tank/EventsDetailPublishers.aspx