A Scorpion Sting? Ouch!

Yes, we have scorpions in Las Vegas. After all, we live in the Mojave Desert and scorpions like deserts. The scorpions found here are not the scorpions that you’ve seen in the old Western movies or in the old horror movies like “The Black Scorpion”. Luckily, of the ~2500 identified species of scorpions found on Earth, we only have a few common ones here.

According to Preventive Pest Control of Las Vegas, which provides a Comprehensive Field Guide to Nevada Scorpions for our local reading pleasure, the three most common scorpions found in Las Vegas are the Arizona Bark Scorpion, the Desert Hairy Scorpion, and the Stripe-Tailed Scorpion. 

The Arizona Bark Scorpion is the most venomous and dangerous. The Desert Hairy Scorpion is the largest U.S. species, and the Stripe-Tailed Scorpion can be identified by its tail stripes (duh!). All three species are venomous, with stings from the latter two being more similar to a bee sting in severity.

We’ve lived in Las Vegas for about seven years now, and we occasionally see them in the house. Glue traps (hate them) and pest control/ exterminators are the best bet for eliminating them. We’ve had an exterminator that comes every six weeks or so since we moved in.

I got my first sting about a week ago from an Arizona Bark Scorpion. David’s never been stung. Less than an inch long, the little bugger was clinging to the bottom side of a cantaloupe in our raised planter and his tan color blended in perfectly with the cantaloupe rind. He stung me once on the thumb and twice more on the top of my hand. Ouch!

Arizona Bark Spider

Actually, he startled me more than he hurt me. It felt more like a potent bee sting. I immediately washed the area with soap and water and removed my ring in case of swelling. Other than the initial sting and shock of being stung and seeing an arachnid crawling on my hand, it really wasn’t too painful. My hand tingled for a couple of hours and the sting sites were a bit sore, but no swelling or fear of death and all gone by evening. And the scorpion? Flat as a pancake and in scorpion heaven… no, scorpion hell… just for biting me.

After the incident, we searched around the planter to see if we could see any more. We couldn’t, so I ordered a pair of UV flashlights on Amazon to see if we could spot them at night. According to AI, “Scorpions fluoresce and glow a distinct bright green under a black light due to compounds in their exoskeleton, specifically a substance called beta-carboline in the hyaline layer of the cuticle. This fluorescence is a visible-light emission resulting from the absorption of UV light. While the exact purpose is still unknown, one theory suggests it helps scorpions detect the presence of UV light to determine when to stay hidden, avoiding bright moonlight and predators.”

This guy was nestled in the rocks in our backyard trying to hide.

We tromped out into the backyard to see what we could see with the UV lights. David spotted one on the side of the planter, but he ducked under cover as soon as the light was on him. We spotted another on the rocks near the deck. It was partially hidden and I snapped a photo, but it was not as good as the one I found on Derek Muller’s Veritasium website.

Under the UV light, scorpions fluoresce. Image: Derek Muller’s Veritasium website

Other than me stepping on them or David being my arachnid-killing hero, I learned that scorpions do have several local predators. Bats, owls, lizards, rodents, snakes, and even other arachnids evidently find them tasty enough to include them in their diets, and have developed an immunity to their venom. Bats, owls, and lizards sound okay… rodents, snakes and other arachnids… not so good. We’ll stick with insecticide sprays.

By the way, I’m a Scorpio, born under the zodiac sign ruled by the constellation Scorpius. You’d think I’d be given a pass and be exempt from scorpion stings. Evidently not so!

I thought it interesting to learn that the constellation Scorpius was named after the mythological giant scorpion sent by Gaia, the Greek earth goddess, to slay Orion, the hunter, after he boasted that he would hunt and kill all the animals on Earth. The battle between Orion and Scorpius was so far-reaching that Zeus immortalized both as constellations in the night sky, placing Scorpius in the opposite part of the sky from Orion so they would never fight or appear together again. A lesson to serve as a reminder for mortals to curb their excessive pride.