# Scorpions!



## Sikinos Lady

Hi everyone, just new to site so hope this message works lol! We live for 6 months of the year in Sikinos and have always had a problem with scorpions - last year totalled 9 throughout the summer. Can anyone recommend preventative measures, ie poisons etc that we could use. The house is 300+ years old and when we leave we seal everything and they are still there to greet us on our return! Our main concern is for our dog, that he doesn't get stung. :fear:


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## PaulAshton

Sikinos Lady said:


> Hi everyone, just new to site so hope this message works lol! We live for 6 months of the year in Sikinos and have always had a problem with scorpions - last year totalled 9 throughout the summer. Can anyone recommend preventative measures, ie poisons etc that we could use. The house is 300+ years old and when we leave we seal everything and they are still there to greet us on our return! Our main concern is for our dog, that he doesn't get stung. :fear:


What an entomological find you have me drooling! 

There are 2 main species of scorpions in Greece, Euscorpius Carpathicus and Mesobuthus Gibbosus but without a photo I would be unable to identify, the latter species can grow quite large.

They can give a painful sting and are only deadly if you are allergic to the reaction, you get scorpions here in the Sinai in Egypt where I live however only encountered rarely  I hope to come across Chaetopelma gracile which is the only species of tarantula native to Egypt

There are no poisons for scorpions, you can use but you can use a black UV light to identify them as they will glow in the dark then remove them by sweeping them into a dust pan place them in a jar and release them they are nocturnal and active at night










Conventional insecticides will not be effective as scorpions are Arachnida species, not insects but a long acting miticide might work if it is a fumigant but it smells really bad and is solvent based

Don't have nightmares they viviparous and give birth to young they carry on the back so you probably have a colony :eyebrows:


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## wka

Paul's post reminds me of the episode in Gerald Durrell's book "My Family and Other Animals," when the family (in Corfu) is invaded by a scorpion and her hundreds of babies, and little Gerry has to collect them all with a spoon. I consider myself very lucky that in 2 years in Folegandros we never saw a single scorpion! Maybe a good idea to keep an Epi-Pen around just in case someone does turn out to have an allergy and gets stung?


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## Sikinos Lady

*Thanks Paul .....!*

Oh I feel so much better lol !! I think every year we get visited by a 'family'. Babies are small and pretty transparent, adults max 2 inches and brownish. Usually once the family has been dealt with we don't get any more visits. All have been found under things, books, kitchen utensils etc except last year when daddy decided to visit. It was early evening and we were chatting by the door. I looked down and big bruiser daddy confidently walked between us into the kitchen - not for long I might add and made a bit of a mess!!! We have old beams everywhere in the house so the thought of one dropping on me in bed makes me cringe! We also always check shoes before putting them on.


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## PaulAshton

I do like insects you can imagine my excitement when I see a praying mantis 

There is a solution to repel them, citronella oil that you can get in the UK at holland and barrett, place a few drops in water and spray or cotton balls with a few drops and place where they frequent.

Failing that collect lemons and leave rings of the rind in any crevice or on beams being careful juice does not bleach anything

Moth balls are another method but will smell as you know..

Any of the above methods will permeate the fine cuticle type chitin skin of juveniles much to the detriment of the scorpion :ranger:

There is a ready market by bug collectors in the UK for these scorpions I am however not aware of export regulations except in the past everything went into my luggage people were paying good money for Helix pomatia, edible roman snails as pets, there are even collectors for cockroach species, go figure :eyebrows:

Scorpions can go for £15 - 20 each amongst enthusiasts..


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## wka

Wow, Sikinos Lady! No need to worry about the drachma now - farm your scorpions and profit!  Paul, those are great tips that could be useful for many of us in the Greece forum, thanks for posting!


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## PaulAshton

wka said:


> Wow, Sikinos Lady! No need to worry about the drachma now - farm your scorpions and profit!  Paul, those are great tips that could be useful for many of us in the Greece forum, thanks for posting!


Simply place Bug Nation in google there is a section on scorpions, mantids, snails etc

They do auctions and have classifieds it would be up to you guys to find out shipping methods hope I have guided you to a creepy but profitable hobby hope it puts some money in your pocket, as a general rule packets are not checked EU to EU, you guys could also export seed if garden cultivated wild populations should not be touched unless the habitat is going to be built on and destroyed, just check before you end up in a Greek prison 

Insects and arachnids normally travel well I will not admit to being the only person in Egypt with a Mexican red knee tarantula with a life span of 20 years they become part of the family :spider:


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## precociousindy

I don't know too much about scorpions but I used to live in a desert and our dog was stung several times on the nose by a scorpion and she seemed completely fine other than being a bit dumbfounded. 
I found out that most scorpions are similar to a wasp or bee sting unless allergic when I called poison control. But of course, these were not Greek scorpions we are talking about. Good luck and watch your feet!


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