Tips and Tricks to Scorp Hunting

Okay seeing as how some people like myself enjoy going out and collecting the local species here are a few tips for you crazy bug hunters . PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT PLEASE DO NOT OVER COLLECT

MATERIALS
-Backpack
-Containers(AVOID GLASS CONTAINERS)
-Water (2 bottles one for you one for your bugs)
-Roll of paper towels
-Small shovel
-large shovel
-tongs
-BLACKLIGHT(DUH!!!)
-Normal Hikiking gear(boots, gloves, food, ect.)

AREA TIPS
Of course it all depends on where you live and what scorps your looking for, but here are some tips anyways.
If you are looking DESERT species obviously look for a dry region. It's always good to ask the locals if they ever seen any scorp and where they've seen them . Of course they'll give you a slighly exaggerated story about a GIANT scorpion they saw years ago when they were 10. The EASIEST place to find scorp are in wasteland full of garbage. Bad for the enviroment? I think not these scorps and spiders make their homes under garbage. If you are looking for FOREST scorps try looking for spots where shallow water is present sometimes near rivers. Large boulders and fallen trees make home for the scorps. If you are looking for BARK scorpions...well you out of luck because I've never found any in California. When I do you be assured to I'll add that here.

DAY TIPS
Well first off your blacklight is useless during the day. I don't care how big and powerful it is it won't do you any good. What you want to do is keep your eyes our for anthing you can lift up. Planks of wood, rocks, logs, trash, carpet(i alwas find them under carpet when theres garbage around), ect. When you lift any thing up make you are behind it and lift towards you. The reason for this is that if you encounter a snake or anything dangerous it'll make them run away from you instead of towards. YOu. A lot of times you'll find scorps under really heavy objects. Dont strain yourself ask for help. Next you want to keep your eyes open for burrows. What do scorp burrows look like? Well for those of you that keep scorps you might have noticed that when they dig they leave a cresecent shape. Thats not my picture but thats what a scorp burrow would look like. Some more smooth than others some tiny, some huge. Best way to dig out the scorp is dig a small ditch in front of the entrance and with your tongs or a stick see how far it goes. It most likey will be bigger than than you think. Start shortening the burrow my cutting layers into it about an inch at at time making the entrance farther and farther back. Try to periodicly check the depth of the burrow with the stick. If you see it has gone more than a foot in it's time to bring out the big shove. Start digging behind the burrow being as careful as possible and at the same time still cheking the burrow for depth. Sometimes you'll find a scorp hiding, other time an empty burrow. This is a slow process and can take up to 30 minutes per burrow. You can sometimes try to flood the scorp out if the burrow goes down use a bit of water and flood the hole. They usually come out right after but I don't recomend this technique. REMEMBER SCORPIONS DIG SPIRAL BURROWS.

NIGHT TIPS
Here your blacklight is your best friend. Try to pick a night with a new moon. As most of you know scorp stick out like a sore thumb under BL but you have to also remember that a lot of things in the wild also glow. Anything white like garbage might confuse you, paintballs, legless lizards, certain fungii, ect. What you want to do is go back to any burrows you might of seen during the day and check the area around there and the entrances. There's really not that many tips for the blacklight just certain recomendations. Bring extra batteries and a regular flashlight. When you're looking around flip a few rock and shine your light under the object as well as the object it self. Check every angle of everything. Sometimes you miss scorps because the BL is not hitting it correctly so shine the light from the top, from the bottom, on the sides, ect. This is especially useful on cliffs.


Any other recomendations are welcomed, especilly those on bark scorpions.

-Eddy

Mexico this summer!

I'm not sure yet maybe...or texas. But definatly next summer. Durango baby hell yeah C. suffusus...just gotta sneak them across the border but hey If I did it so can the scorps ...JK!!!
-Eddy

Hahaahahahaha
I'ma go by car, not plane.
That way I can hide them in between my stuff.
They don't even check that thouroughly. Maybe like 5 Deli cups with a couple in each.

For bark scorpions I just look on the wall in my backyards

thats detailed.
@venom, estas loco guey, asta durango en carro.

when i was on holiday in florida i found a rough greensnake in a hedge. it was soooo cool.

~Abyss~ wrote:

thats detailed.
@venom, estas loco guey, asta durango en carro.

Done it before.
(Not me driving though)

I've gone there on bus once...boring.
-Eddy

hell i wanna go with ya'll lol
only ifi could
but i could not pass as ya brother lol

Venom is pretty white...and I'm the darkest out of my mostly "spanish" family. THey got the Spaniard gene....I got my grandpa's aztek/mayan colors.

in that case, I'm ya long lost in the mist brother, hey bro lol

~Abyss~ wrote:

Venom is pretty white...and I'm the darkest out of my mostly "spanish" family. THey got the Spaniard gene....I got my grandpa's aztek/mayan colors.

I'm the opposite, my granparents/ dad is browner then you.

I'm more of an Idian red. Than I am brown. A little of both.
-Eddy

I'm just a tan looking white dude
i get dark in the summer
so i could be eddy's older bro

My older bro looks younger than me...Thats just sad.

omgomg omg scorp hunting in a few months.

I'm just a tan looking white dude
i get dark in the summer
so i could be eddy's older bro

Matt Grahm's Collecting Tips:
http://sparkless.net/matt/SCORPIONCOLLECTING.htm

I noticed two things while blacklighting in Texas: Scorps in general tended to avoid open areas, but I saw lots where the edge of a road met grass. I also noticed when blacklighting away from roads that some would hide in grass-like plants that grew in tufts on bare soil.

It seems that even at night they'll stick nearby to hiding spots, especially plants (a little humidity in the desert, maybe?).

When I went looking for forest scorpions, the best rocks were those at the bottom of a hill that had soil underneath them. The few that were on dead grass or more rocks didn't yield much. (I didn't find any actually on the hill, either.)

A couple more tips: always keep a delicup handy, and if you can, use a blacklight that you can hold with your mouth if necessary. Both of those together make snagging a scorp a lot easier if no one can come over to help.

anyone know if it's possible to go scorp hunting in england and whereabouts?? it's probably a no coz of the cold weather but ive heard rumours they are people that do hunt them just not 100% sure about it... would like to do it someday...

yeah, sheerness on the isle of sheppey has euscorpius flavicaudis (probably spelt wrong) in the wall by near the dockyard and a member on here, 231bex, has been there and collected some and there is a post somewhere about it.

https://scorpionforum.darkbb.com/t5330-sheerness-dockyards-yellowtail-scorpion-colony-uk?highlight=sheerness
here it is.

Heya I have found the coolest trick for Bark Scorpions EVER!!
Granted I live in an area where there is an abundance, but this seems to attract them.
Abyss had mentioned that he seemed to find Scorps under carpet,so I cut out pieces of some old carpet & laid em out randomly all over my property.
In a week I had only found one under the carpet pieces...Odd,since I can step out my back door w/a Blacklight & see 5 or 6.
Sooo...I got to thinkin...these guys have a rep for bein found under sinks & such...Why? Theyre looking for a drink.
I took the hose out & wet down the carpet,then threw them out on my property.
The 1st 2 nights I found nothing."Ah well" I thought "So much for that idea"
On the 3rd night there was a Scorpion under each of the 5 pieces of carpet
The 4th night (last night) EVERY piece of carpet had Scorps under it! Out by our abandoned Stables there was 6 under that piece.That kinda creeped me out So Im leavin it alone until I have a few more containers to put em in...lol
Anyway I thought Id throw that out there....itd be cool if it helped somebody else.

thats really cool wish we could do that in our back garden lol would be awesome!