Southern Californians - How prevalent are scorpions here?

[KitchenWitch]

I live in Orange County.

At the schoolyard the other day, some of the mamas and I were walking out to our cars after dropping our kids off and one of the moms stepped on what she thought was a "bug".

I looked closer at it and it looked like a very small scorpion - :scared:

It was about an inch long and tan in color.

Tell me, please that it was not a scorpion.

[FloridaJudy]

1. I'm orginally from California

And Libras are far more numerous.

[KitchenWitch]

3. ROFLMFAO

I hear ya!

:silly:

What about Librarians?

[Shakespeare]

2. I've never seen one, but I know they're around here, especially in the deserts.

However, a silverfish (especially in semi-squished condition) looks kinda similar, so maybe that's what it was.

[KitchenWitch]

4. This was NO silverfish...

:scared:

[Taverner]

5. Is it a new housing development?

If so, then yes, it was a scorpion. Expect to see quite a few of them for the next year. Don't worry though - they are antisocial and will run to the hills once they know there's humans around.

We had the issue with rattlers in a NorCal housing development when I was a kid. My aunt and uncle lived in a new development in Orange that had scorpions at first. After a year or two, they left for the hills (the scorpions).

If you're feeling adventurous go out at night with a blacklight - they glow in the dark :)


As for scorpions, keep in mind they jump and will if threatened. The smaller the scorpion, the more venom too.

[KitchenWitch]

6. It was in a school yard

but there are a bunch of new housing developments close by...

:eek:

[Taverner]

13. He/She was scared and probably trying to find shelter

[KitchenWitch]

7. Here is a picture of a larger version of what I saw

:yoiks:

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12. Image hosted by AngelFire is all I see

[huskerlaw]

8. I've never seen one

Thank Jeebus. I'd freak.

However, my dad lives in Nevada and he gets them...and they look like what you described. :scared:

[XemaSab]

9. They're around

but you rarely see them unless you are turning over rocks. :P

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10. Completely unknown except for in the deserts.

I have lived in California (Orange and San Diego counties) for 38 years and the only time I have ever seen a scorpion in California was way out in the desert of Imperial County. I think they are completely unknown in the coastal counties. The one I saw in Imperial County was very small and tan in color. A friend of mine who lives in Palm Springs says there are "wind scorpions" there, but those are not the same thing as the "regular" scorpions, they are more like spiders. It is possible that a scorpion native to the deserts of Arizona and part of California could have "hitched a ride" on a vehicle and ended up in Los Angeles or Orange counties, but that would be a random occurrence and they are not indigenous to the coastal areas.

[Parche]

11. Where Is Mr Scorpio>

:shrug: :shrug: :hi:

[MrScorpio]

16. Right here

I've only been to California once... For a couple of hours

[Beaverhausen]

14. Correct me if I'm wrong but...they really aren't that dangerous are they?

I know people in AZ and other places live with them all the time and they really aren't that dangerous.

Am I dreaming?

Can a scorpion sting kill a human? a pet?

[Az_lefty]

15. I'm in Az. My friend told me it was like a bee sting...

rattle snakes are far worse.

[Kali]

18. similar pain levels - scorpion might be more intense, but at least for me

I swell so damn bad with bee stings, if I had to choose I'd take the scorpion.

Never experienced a rattler. Yikes - know a few who have and my youngest son was bit on the hand at 18 months, buthe doesn't remember it at all.

[Kali]

17. there is always a risk of allergy, but they aren't THAT bad

I have been stung countless times - by the supposedly worst - Bark Scorpions (Centroides) and while it is a painful sting (and an intersting one - almost like an electrical shock) it goes a way pretty quickly. I have never been bitten by a rattler, but of the other venomous critters I rank harvester ants above scorpions for pain. then scorps, bees, wasps (never been hit by a black widow or a giant centipede either so don't know where those fit)