Asian Scorpion
The Asian Scorpion lives in the forests of Southeast Asia, from India to Malaysia.
- Length 12 cm
- Lifespan 8 years
- Diet Invertebrates
- Habitat Forests
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Morphology
This scorpion is all black, except for the telson (the tip of the tail with the stinger), which is reddish. Like the other arachnids, it has 8 legs attached to the cephalothorax and a pair of pedipalps, in the shape of tweezers. It shows sexual dimorphism, with males having larger pincers and a longer tail than females.
Behaviour
It is a territorial and non-gregarious species. When it feels threatened, it assumes the characteristic posture of scorpions, raising its pincers and opening them. This one also uses the same pincers to hunt. The Asian Scorpion hides under logs or leaves during the day and hunts at night.
Reproduction
During courtship, the male guides the female back and forth with his claws. Afterward, the male deposits the sperm on the ground and then the female moves over it, collecting it with an organ in her abdomen. As they are an oviparous species, the female later releases her eggs on the forest floor, and after they hatch, the young are carried on the mother's back until the first molt.
Curiosities
- The sting of the scorpion is very painful, but not fatal to man.
- Fossils of these scorpions have been found at the bottom of the sea that are 430 million years old.
- They can defend themselves against predators much larger than they are.
