BonaireTalk Discussion Group
Bonaire Nature & Nature Organizations: Scorpions on Bonaire
Bonaire Talk: Bonaire Nature & Nature Organizations: Insects and Arachnids of Bonaire: Scorpions on Bonaire
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Pauline Kayes (BonaireTalker - Post #29) on Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - 11:19 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Hi, I have heard that there are scorpions on bonaire. does anyone know what type and if they sting you, what effects occur? also where are they found mostly? I would appreciate any information anyone has as I am coming to bonaire with a friend who has big fears of scorpions! thanks, pauline

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Linda Richter - NetTech (Moderator - Post #1592) on Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - 11:48 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Our scorpions are small (max about 1.5 inches), straw colored, and deliver a sting described like a bee sting that lasts for 15-20 minutes. I can't verify that since I've not been stung. People allergic to bee stings would likely be allergic to scorpion stings. Our scorpions are not considered dangerous.

Scorpions are nocturnal hunters so you don't really see them around much. As a rule of thumb, don't leave your clothes on the floor, and shake out your shoes before you put them on. If you move dead leaves or rocks during the day, you may find a scorpion crouched under there.

If you find one in your room, you can scoot them out the door but remember they can climb so don't nudge them with a covered toe just to have them climb up your leg. Hornet or wasp spray will not kill them. It just makes them mad.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Barry Baker (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #497) on Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - 12:54 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Sherry got stung by one the had crawled into her wetsuit that we had left on a towel on the floor. We got to Angel City and she was turing the wetsuit right side out when it got her on the bicep down by the elbow. She said it hurt pretty good for 30 minutes or so and then tapered off but still hurt for a couple of hours. Nothing but a little redness at the spot of the sting.

We stayed out of the water for 30 minutes to make sure she did not have an allergic reaction. After that we went ahead and completed the dive and the rest of the vacation with no other problems

After returning home, she noticed that the spot where she had been stung turned red and looked like a big mesquito bite but has since subsided.

So far nothing else has happened. It was our first time experience with the scorpion. The funny part was we were at Jake and Linda's the night before and I had mentioned that I had never seen a Bonairean scorpion so Linda showed me a jar full of dead ones. Then the next day Sherry gets stung.

...maybe it was a plant...

Aquaman

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By michael gaynor (Extraordinary BonaireTalker - Post #1712) on Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - 2:10 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

also, remember that generally if you see one, chances are a sister or bother is close by.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Cynde (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #9806) on Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - 2:48 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

niiiice!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Carole Baker (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #2962) on Wednesday, December 17, 2003 - 1:04 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Eeeewwww! Don't trust those little critters one bit! Used to have to shake out our shoes in Ft. Lauderdale, too.....eeeewwwww! Surprise, surprise. Glad to hear Sherry was OK...scary stuff, Maynard. Carole

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Wes Burgess, MD, PhD (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #1) on Sunday, September 21, 2008 - 6:14 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

My wife discovered a tiny, translucent, tan scorpion (2 inches long) on our bed one morning. I scooped him up in my hand and carried him back to his natural environment. It was nothing to freak out about.
Scorpions venom and anatomy are specialized to hunt insects; they have no interest in stinging humans, nor do they get mad. For the most part, scorpion stings happen as a natural reaction when people sit or lay down on scorpions, or otherwise begin to crush them.
Scorpion venom is complex, but it is genetically distinct from insect venom. Anaphylaxis comes from antibodies formed to foreign substances released into the blood, especially proteins. In 1972 I was stung by 9 Xiphosurid bees (communal bees the size of bumble bees but without the fuzz). In 1986 in Miami, when I was stung by a velvet ant (female wasp) the antibodies i made to the bees triggered an anaphylactic reaction.
We have a genetically coded (sign stimulus) reaction to crawly things, but in our civilized culture it is better to worry about important dangers like being run over on the highway by drunk drivers than to be over reacting to crawly stuff. We're lucky that Bonaire's habitats are undisturbed enough so we can enjoy flamingos, reefs and (yes) scorpions in their natural environments.
I agree Linda and Carole, shake out your shoes and just look before you sit, lie or flop down somewhere. So far as i know, the biggest and most common health problems on Bonaire come from sunburn and skin cancer, not from arthropods.
Speaking of invertebrates, check out the beautiful Elysia (lettuce sea slugs); perhaps the most beautiful life form on Bonaire.
Wes (zatochi)

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Nancy Klune (BonaireTalker - Post #84) on Monday, March 22, 2010 - 12:08 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I can not stress enough how wonderful Absorbine Jr. is for scorpion, spider, ant, bee etc etc stings. I live in Texas, we have wood bees, yellow jackets, honey bees and all kind of bitey stingy things. As soon as you are stung dab Absorbine Jr on the sting and repeat in 5 min. or so. Within 20-45 min you will have a hard time finding where the sting was and by the next day all signs of it will be gone. I ride a motorcycle and ALWAY have a small bottle in my bike.

 


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