Posted on 12/31/2011 7:36:06 PM PST by nickcarraway
According to the Banner Poison and Drug information center, 2011 will set a record for scorpion stings.
In 2010, the center logged 8,718 scorpion exposures. Doctors say the total for 2011 will be about 10,000.
"This has been a record year for calls to the poison center for scorpion envenomations," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio, of the poison center. "We've seen about a 15 percent increase from last year."
Pest control companies saw much the same.
"Last year was the worst I'd seen in a number of years, and this year tops last year," said Andy Witcher, of Scorpion Tech Termite and Pest Control.
Witcher says the economy, forcing many to cut back on pest control and yard services, as well as scorching summer heat are likely to blame for the record numbers.
"When it's hotter, they start to get more active and they enter structures. When it starts to cool off, they hang out where they are," said Witcher.
As for what may be in store for 2012?
"A lot depends on how much moisture we get," said Witcher. "If we get a lot of moisture, that increases pest populations which in turn increases scorpion activity (because pests are a food source for scorpions)."
According to CBS 5 Meteorologist Chris Dunn, the valley should be in for drier than normal conditions through the rest of winter and the spring. As for the summer, he says it's too early to tell if the weather will trend hotter than normal.
Global warming ... Bush’s fault. (First!)
I’ve been stung by scorpions and it hurts like hell but I never thought to go to the doctor for it.
It’s funny we used to have scorpions and had been bitten a couple of times, but that was ten years ago! I don’t know where they went but good riddience!
“I’ve been stung by scorpions and it hurts like hell but I never thought to go to the doctor for it.”
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I knew a British guy here that was stung (suspected scorpion).
He refused to have it treated and IIRC it continued to fester
for some weeks.
He then died, kidney failure, I think.
May, or may not have been related to the bite.
I would never take a chance with that kind of bite.
Growing up our house was one of the first built on the street. So for years we were surrounded by fields. I remember having to check my shoes in the morning before putting them on to make sure there wasn’t a scorpion in there.
When we moved into a new development in Las Vegas a few decades ago, the best thing we had for detecting scorpions was our cat. He’d follow em along the baseboards, signaling to me to come and get em. After a couple years, they were eventually just plain poisoned out of the area.
I was thinking this had to do with people who owned the album “Virgin Killer.”
Never minds the scorpions. KPHO is one of the most dangerous things in Phoenix. Claiming to unbiased and fair, they are doing their dead-level best to help the minority communities—who are trying to protect Obama’s eligibility to hold the presidency—get our Sheriff Joe Arpaio to resign because his office is actively investigating the Kenya thug’s eligibility.
Different types of scorpions are around, and it also depends on the place you were stung. My husband was stung by one, but it did not need treatment. On the other hand, his bite by a brown recluse did have to be treated.
One thing about scorpions I did learn... The smaller the pincers, the more potent the venom. For the most part, if the scorpion has big pincers, it doesn't really need the sting that often.
Mark
It's really important to know what species of scorpions are in your area. Some are just annoying, like a bee sting. Others can be deadly. A general rule of thumb is usually to look at the size of the pincers. If they're big, compared to the rest of the scorpion, the venom usually isn't too powerful. However, if the scorpion is large, with small, thin pincers, they generally have extremely potent venom, and can be extremely dangerous.
Mark
>”The smaller the pincers, the more potent the venom”<
It’s good to know my Venom isn’t very potent.
I grew up in S. Fla. We had the same ritual every morning.
BTW... scorpions glow under UV light. So grab that UV flashlight and go hunting. :^)
Scorpions are common hereabouts in the Missouri Ozarks. They are small, light to medium brown and don’t seem to be a bother.
We spray twice a year. Never been stung.
Got any cow killers(velvet ants)?
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