THE SCORPIONS OF MEXICO.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 2513, 18 August 1888, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE SCORPIONS OF MEXICO.

One of the greatest, if not the greatest, pests in Mexico, are th 3 land scorpions, which, at certain seasons of the year, become as numerous in the house as flies. They swarm in ■ all parts, within the cracks of the walls, between breaks of the tiles of the floor, inside your garments, dancing about with inconceivable rapidity, waving their sting, which is located at the end of the tail, in all directions, either for attack or defence. Turn up a rug or tablecloth and you disturb a flourishing colony ; shake your shoes in the morning and out they dart. Their colour is generally mahogany-hued and their length about two inches, but in some instances they have been seen of more than double that length. Their sting is seldom fatal, but much dreaded by the inhabitants, as it is more or less severe, according to the condition of the system. Victims have been known to remain for days in convulsions, with stomach swelled as in dropsy ; while others do not suffer much more than from a wasp or bee-sting Their food consists of beetles and other insects, and also the eggs of spiders. The anterior pair of feet or palpi are modified into pincers or claws like tbnse of n lobster, by which it seizes its prey, piercinsr this with their stings again and again before beginning the meal. The young are produced iu great numbers at very frequeut intervals, the mother displaying far more regard for her offspring than their vicious nature seems to justify. During their infancy she carries them about, clinging in great numbers to her baok, limbs, and tail, never leaving her retreat for a moment, unless, over-burdened by her weight, her hold relaxes from the wall, and down falls the whole happy family. When they are big enough, they generally reward the maternal devotion by destroying the mother, tearing her piecemeal with the greatest ferocity. Geologically the class Arachnida is of great antiquity, as they are found in a fossil state in the coal measures in various parts of the world. The scorpions are the largest and most formidable members of the class Arachnida, and they are, for the most part, confined to the warmer regions of the earth. The genus Androc tonus, to which the largest European form belongs, is chiefly represented in Africa, although they occur in Western Asia as well as in Europe. Its name, which signifies "man-killer," indicates the dread with which they are regarded in Africa, where their sting is productive of painful consequences, but whether it is ever fatal remains in doubt.—Frank