Scorpions in central Texas?

**Acousticx** · November 30, 2011, 10:03 PM

Where I live, I have never seen a scorpion in the house nor around the house. This year I caught one in the garage in July, 1 in the house on August, and 1 today in my room. What could be the sudden attraction of them? They aren't real big and have a brownish greenish color. This one was curled up when I found it as well. How do we get rid of them?

**xcorps** · November 30, 2011, 11:09 PM

Call an exterminator.

**SLN445** · November 30, 2011, 11:39 PM

Get a shovel

**Sphere** · December 01, 2011, 04:19 AM

You should contact their king and negotiate a peace

**conon394** · December 02, 2011, 08:09 AM

http://insects.tamu.edu/extension/pu...pubs/e_362.cfm

I wonder if the drought conditions in Texas are simply causing them to look for a better home.

**YuriVII** · December 03, 2011, 10:24 PM

I live in Central Texas as well (on the border of Travis and Hays Co so it is somewhat out in the hills). Scorpions are not unheard of and infact have been quite common around here ever since I got here. Maybe not in your area though. One thing to remember is that they always travel in pairs and that there is usually another one around.

The stings of scorpions around here can be painful but not too harmful. They got a nasty sting but once you get stung it doesn't linger for too long. It's an instant of pain followed by no swelling or anything. Just close your doors and check your shoes every now and again.

**Godfrey I of Leuven** · December 07, 2011, 12:34 PM

This one by any chance?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striped_bark_scorpion

**MathiasOfAthens** · December 10, 2011, 12:52 PM

The fact that your home and your suburb is prob built on top of their habitat and other animals and insects habitats doesnt make it so surprising that they invade your territory. Dont buy such a cheap habitat next time.

**Jaketh** · December 10, 2011, 10:49 PM

Move to the Northeast away from the coast, the worst we have here are deer

**John I Tzimisces** · December 14, 2011, 12:04 PM

Originally Posted by Jaketh

Move to the Northeast away from the coast, the worst we have here are deer

Well, and the associated lyme disease. Which I got from working in the woods this summer. Guh.

tldr don't roll around in the woods.

**Jaketh** · December 14, 2011, 01:05 PM

Originally Posted by John I Tzimisces

Well, and the associated lyme disease. Which I got from working in the woods this summer. Guh.

tldr don't roll around in the woods.

Ive been "rolling around in the woods" for 16 years and never got anything, not even poison ivy

**saglam2000** · December 14, 2011, 08:23 AM

I saw a black widow 7 years ago up here in New York

**Admiral Piett** · December 15, 2011, 11:13 PM

Originally Posted by Acousticx

Where I live, I have never seen a scorpion in the house nor around the house. This year I caught one in the garage in July, 1 in the house on August, and 1 today in my room. What could be the sudden attraction of them? They aren't real big and have a brownish greenish color. This one was curled up when I found it as well. How do we get rid of them?

Where abouts do you live in Central Texas? I grew up in Comal County, in the Canyon Lake and New Braunfels area and we had lots and lots of scorpions and those big two-headed field centipedes. I'm talking those 6 - 8 inch long centipedes and they are mean.

Most scorpions in Texas are one of two species, either the striped bark scorpion (not related to the extremely venomous Arizona bark scorpion) or the Texas cave scorpion.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striped_bark_scorpion

http://bugguide.net/node/view/34626

Try going to walmart and buy the all-purpose poison you spray around the perimeter of your house. Cause of the drought and the rough, dry soil and whatnot they are looking for cool, moist places to rest through the day or look for food. You're going to have a lot less of them through the winter cause they are going to be out looking for moist soil to burrow in gestate their young.

Scorpions love stuff like tree limbs, fallen bark, thick leaves, and rock crevices. Central Texas scorpions aren't the same as the southwestern desert counterparts and tend to shy away from daylight or open terrain.

I've stepped on one when I was up late at night making a pizza. It felt like I stepped on a tack and had a sort of 'liquid heat' type feeling. I lifted my foot to pull the tack out but there was none there and I saw the little bastard laying still on the floor. I just get them to crawl onto a flyswatter and put them outside away from the house because they are great predators to control insect pests and they compete with spiders. The presence of scorpions will also bring geckos and lizards onto your property trying to eat them.

Now, when you start getting black widows, black house spiders, or brown recluses is when you got a problem and should consider an exterminator. I've had close encounters with black widows. Pretty scary. I'm not near as scared of brown recluses though cause some of the human population is actually immune to the necrosis the bite causes. It doesn't make you extremely ill and in pain the way a black widow will.

**conon394** · December 18, 2011, 08:13 AM

or brown recluses

Quite passive really as spiders go, I will try and find the study but a few years The University of Iowa Extension service surveyed houses in Southern Iowa that had persistent, long term populations of the little guys and found more or less no biting incidents over decades. As with a lot things the real issue is ofter the individual's reaction and reconizing a severe reaction right away (anaphylaxis) When living in Houston my daughter could shrug of real blunder into fire ants, but even a bite or two meant a quick trip to uregent/emegency care for my son (and having a epipen on hand).