Arizona bark scorpion
| Arizona bark scorpion |
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| Scientific Classification |
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| Binomial Name |
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Centruroides sculpturatus |
The Arizona Bark Scorpion is species of scorpions known by the scientific name Centruroides sculpturatus. The scorpion can be found in the western part of the United States and in some parts of Mexico. They prefer to hide underneath rocks, treebark, and in other crevice-like places. The adult can grow to be between two and three inches, including the tail. One of the characteristics that separates the Bark Scorpion from the other scorpions in its class is their long, thin tail and their thin pincers. The pincers are as long as they are wide and their tail is only about 1 1/6 inches wide. The tail also has a small bump (or tooth) just below the stinger. They use these to catch and eat their pray. An average gestation period for the scorpion can last anywhere from a few months to a year and a half. They give birth to twenty-four to thirty-five offspring. The offspring are born two at a time and climb onto the mother's back immediately after birth where they stay for two weeks. Unlike most invertebrates, Bark Scorpions don't go through metamorphosis. They molt five or six times before they reach maturity, the first time being after they leave their mother's back. An expected life span for the Bark Scorpion is somewhere between three to five years.
Anatomy
The Arizona Bark Scorpion is a tan or straw colored (a yellow to light brown) species of scorpion. The adult can grow to be between two and three inches, including the tail. [1] The bark scorpion has eight pairs of eyes, one pair at the front/center of its shell and two-five pairs in the front. The main body, or the abdomen, has four pairs of walking legs and an erectile, segmented tail with a drop shaped stinger at the tip. The scorpion has a triangular sternal plate, this identifies the scorpion as poisonous. [2] Each scorpion has a pair of pincers used for feeding and mating. The Bark Scorpion's pincers are long and slender instead of wide and lobster-like. [3] One distinguishing feature of the Bark Scorpion is their long, thin tail and their thin pincers. The pincers are as long as they are wide and their tail is only about 1 1/6 inches wide. The tail also has a small bump (or tooth) just below the stinger. [4]
Reproduction
The courtship for a Bark Scorpion is when the male scorpion grasps the female scorpion's pedipalps with his pincers and begins walking her around. He drops his sperm on the ground and pulls the female over the surface. She takes the sperm in and this fertilizes the eggs. The eggs develop into embryos in the brood chambers inside the mother's body. A shell around the young breaks as they are being born, releasing the young fully developed.[5] A typical gestation period for the scorpion can last anywhere from a few months to a year and a half. They give birth to twenty-four to thirty-five offspring. The offspring are born two at a time and climb onto the mother's back immediately after birth where they stay for two weeks. Bark Scorpions don't go through metamorphosis. They molt five or six times before they reach maturity, the first time being after they leave their mother's back. An expected life span for the Bark Scorpion is three to five years. [6]
Ecology
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Most scorpions are thought of as desert dwelling animals, but they can be found in many more habitats. They can be found in Savannas, deciduous forests, grasslands, mountain pine forests, rain forest, and caves. Scorpions have even been found under snow covered rocks in altitudes over 12,000 feet. [7] In the United States, the Arizona bark scorpion has been found in Southeastern California, Arizona, Nevada, Southern Utah, and parts of New Mexico. Outside of the United States they have been found in the Baja Peninsula and western Sonora in Mexico. In these areas, they hide under logs, tree bark, rocks, and other areas found on hard surfaces. Unlike most scorpions (which are solitary) the bark scorpion can sometimes be found in "aggregates" of 20-30. Out of the other scorpion species in the area, the bark scorpion is the most common found intruding into peoples homes. [8] In captivity, bark scorpions eat mainly feeder crickets. [9] But, because they are nocturnal hunters, in the wild they ambush and eat bugs and cockroaches they catch using their pincers and stinging tail.[10]
Other
The Arizona Bark Scorpion is very low on the food chain, they provide a tasty snack for many different types of animals. They are eaten by birds, reptiles, and other invertebrates. Some of their other predators are birds, spiders, snakes, peccaries, rodents, and other scorpions. One of their biggest predators is us humans. Our pesticides and many land developments destroy their habitats and food sources, killing them off by starvation and exposing them to the other animals looking to eat them. By collecting the bark scorpions for research and selling them in the pet trade, we are causing a serious impact on the scorpion's population. [11]
References
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