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The scorpion is an eight-legged carnivorous anthropod, that are found worldwide. There are around 2,000 different species of known scorpion found in most countries around the world today.

The scorpion is mainly found in the southern hemisphere in deserts and jungle habitats alike. The most northern place the scorpion can be found in the wild is the Isle of Sheppey in the United Kingdom, which is a small island in the North of Kent.

The general age range for most species of scorpion is between 6 months and 25 years, although the actual lifespan of most species of scorpion is unknown as they are very elusive animals in the wild and are often hard to spot due to their generally small size.

Scorpions are arachnids (not insects) and the scorpion is most closely related to spiders and ticks. Scorpions are sometimes referred to as ancient animals as scorpions have been on Earth for over 400 million years, meaning that scorpions already existed on Earth when the dinosaurs arrived.

Scorpions are generally nocturnal animals meaning that they spend the day under rocks and in crevices and then come out to hunt in the safety of darkness. Scorpions are carnivorous animals and paralyze their prey using the venomous sting on the end of their tail so that the scorpion can eat it without trouble. Scorpions also have two large claws or pincers which are located at the front of the body of the scorpion. The claws of the scorpion allow the scorpion to effectively hold onto prey in order to both sting it and then eat it.

Female scorpions give birth to live young in litters that can range from 4 baby scorpions to 8 or 9 baby scorpions. The baby scorpion climbs onto the back of the mother scorpion almost immediately after birth. The mother scorpion will look after her baby scorpions until they are able to hunt for themselves.

For the majority of the time, when a human is stung by a scorpion, the symptoms are often similar to those of a bee sting and are often just swollen and painful. However, around 50 scorpion species are thought to carry enough venom that could cause more serious harm to humans and around half of those 50 scorpion species are believed to be capable of causing fatal results when having stung a human being.

Scorpion Comments (6)

hc and od

"It is amazing.It really helped us a lot."

Igor

"The durango scorpion is one of the world's most deadly scorpions "

Betty the Butterfly

"No, both scorpions and spiders are arachnids not insects! "

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Scorpion Facts

Kingdom: A level of classifying all living things on earth, as similar species are broken into 5 groups including plants, animals and fungi....	Animalia
Phylum: A level of classifying animals within the animal kingdom. Phylum are further divided into subgroups called classes....	Arthropoda
Class: A level of classifying animals in a phylum. Classes are then sub-divided into further groups known as orders....	Arachnida
Order: A level used to classify animals. Classes are broken into sub-groups known as order, which are broken down further into families....	Scorpiones
Family: A level of classifying animals within an order. Orders are broken down in families and families are broken down further into smaller groups called genus....	Scorpionoidea

Scientific Name:	Scorpiones
Type:	Arachnida
Diet:	Carnivore
Size:	2-30cm (0.8-12in)
Weight:	10-100g (0.4-3.5oz)
Top Speed:	19km/h (12mph)
Life Span:	4-25 years
Lifestyle:	Solitary
Conservation Status: The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing the conservation s...	Least Concern

Colour:	Brown, Black, Yellow, Red, White
Skin Type:	Shell
Favourite Food:	Insects
Habitat: The term habitat is used to describe a specific area where a particular animal lives, within an environment. Many animals have adapted to requiring specific conditions which can only be found in their natural habitat su...	Dry desert, grassland, savanna and tropical jungles
Average Litter Size:	6
Main Prey: When an animal is referred to prey, it means that the animal is either hunted or caught for food. Animals that are referred to as prey are generally hunted by bigger animals, although there are a number of exceptions....	Insects, Spiders, Small rodents
Predators: When an animal is referred to as a predator, it means that the animal either hunts or catches other animals. Predatory animals are generally dominant within their environment and will generally hunt animals smaller than...	Rodents, Birds, Lizards
Special Features:	Enormous front pincers and curved stinger tail

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