Giant desert hairy scorpion
The largest scorpion in North America, a sandy-colored desert digger covered in sensing hairs that glows blue-green under ultraviolet light.
Giant desert hairy scorpion at a glance
Hadrurus arizonensis JYE-unt DEZ-urt HAIR-ee SKOR-pee-un; Hadrurus arizonensis is huh-DROO-rus air-ih-zoh-NEN-sis
- Type
- Invertebrate · scorpion
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Size
- Counting its tail, a big one is about 5.5 inches long (up to about 14 cm), roughly the length of a new, unsharpened pencil. It is bigger than any other scorpion in the United States.
- Lifespan
- Long for a bug: about 15 to 20 years, and sometimes longer.
- Conservation
- Not evaluated (not on the IUCN Red List; no special legal protection)
Eats insects, spiders, other scorpions, small lizards
It hunts at night, grabbing prey with its two pincers and stinging it if it fights back. It can feel the tiny footsteps of an insect through the sand using the fine hairs on its body and legs.
Should you worry?
Its sting hurts, but it is not dangerous to a healthy person. Most people say it feels about like a bee or wasp sting, with some swelling that fades. The truly dangerous desert scorpion is the much smaller Arizona bark scorpion, not this giant. The rule for both is the same: never pick up or poke a scorpion, shake out shoes and clothes left outside, and use a light when walking at night.
The giant desert hairy scorpion is the biggest scorpion in North America, about five and a half inches long counting the tail, close to a new unsharpened pencil. It is sandy-colored, to match the ground it lives on, and its tail and legs are covered in fine brown hairs that give it its name. Those hairs are not just decoration. They feel the faint tremble of an insect’s footsteps through the sand, so the scorpion can hunt in the dark by touch, grabbing prey with its two pincers and stinging it only if it fights back.
It spends the blazing desert day underground. The scorpion digs a deep burrow, and it can slow its body down so far that it survives for months on very little food or water, waiting out the heat and coming up to hunt at night. It also has a trick that seems almost invented: under a blacklight the whole animal glows bright blue-green, because chemicals in its hard shell soak up ultraviolet light people cannot see and hand it back as color. Scientists walk the desert at night with blacklights just to find them.
The sting is the part worth being clear about. It hurts. Most people compare it to a bee or wasp sting, with some swelling that fades, but for a healthy person it is not dangerous. The genuinely dangerous desert scorpion is a different, much smaller one, the Arizona bark scorpion, and the safe rule covers both: never pick up or poke a scorpion, shake out shoes and clothes left outside overnight, and carry a light when walking after dark.
Did you know?
- Under a blacklight (ultraviolet light) the whole scorpion glows a bright blue-green. Chemicals in its hard shell soak up the invisible light and give it back as color, and scientists use blacklights to find scorpions in the dark.
- It is the biggest scorpion in North America. The "hairy" name comes from the brown, sensing hairs that cover its tail and legs.
- It digs deep burrows and can slow its body way down, surviving on very little food or water for months at a time.
Common questions
Is the giant desert hairy scorpion dangerous to kids?
Its sting hurts about like a bee sting but is not dangerous to a healthy person. Don't touch it, and it will not bother you.
Why do scorpions glow in the dark?
Their hard shell holds chemicals that light up blue-green when ultraviolet light, from a blacklight, shines on them.
What do these scorpions eat?
Insects, spiders, small lizards, and even other scorpions, all caught at night.
How big do they get?
About 5.5 inches long counting the tail, which makes it the biggest scorpion in North America.