- Joined
- Feb 12, 2003
- Messages
- 339
I consider myself to be a relatively well-informed amateur, but I saw something on Animal Planet tonight and I have a few questions for the pros.
The show was on venomous animals, and one of the featured stars was the scorpion. The handler was an army biologist who taught solders what to do in the case of a sting over seas. The segment on the show specifically focused on the L. quinquestriatus, which he claimed to have been stung by just two hours before filming. He said the sting felt like getting hit by a hammer, but that it only lasted about a day (he'd been stung many times before). He had the host of the show handle numerous scorps, including an H. Arizonensis, and an A. bicolor (I'm guessing, it really could have been any shinny black buthid with a thick tail). So how dangerous are these buggers when push comes to shove? I know the stats on the LD50's, etc., but aside from any abnormal reactions or complications, are even the deadliest species dangerous for a large, heathy, non-allergic man?
Now, I realize the potential for hypersensitivity after numerous stings, as well as situational factors, like where the sting was located, how much venom was injected, what kind of habitat the scorp had, how much/what it had eaten, and the time proximity between a current sting and the last one, esp if the scorps are used for milking, which is why all of this is very inexact, I'm just curious about the realistic vs. potential danger of a highly toxic scorp sting.
The reason I ask is that despite the studying I've done, I've never owned a dangerous scorp--I never had the need to keep something that could cause me serious harm. I've very careful, in fact, I've never been stung (knock on wood), but still, why risk it? The problem is that some of the scorps I'd like to study up close are harmful--for example, I've love a B. Jacksoni from Invertipet just for show, but on top of that, I'd really like to study a parabuthus sp. If this guy on tv is comfortable enough to hold them, perhaps the danger level is lower than I thought . . .
although now that I think about it, this could be like saying, since I saw someone do it on Jacka$$ it must be safe.
So what's the story???
The show was on venomous animals, and one of the featured stars was the scorpion. The handler was an army biologist who taught solders what to do in the case of a sting over seas. The segment on the show specifically focused on the L. quinquestriatus, which he claimed to have been stung by just two hours before filming. He said the sting felt like getting hit by a hammer, but that it only lasted about a day (he'd been stung many times before). He had the host of the show handle numerous scorps, including an H. Arizonensis, and an A. bicolor (I'm guessing, it really could have been any shinny black buthid with a thick tail). So how dangerous are these buggers when push comes to shove? I know the stats on the LD50's, etc., but aside from any abnormal reactions or complications, are even the deadliest species dangerous for a large, heathy, non-allergic man?
Now, I realize the potential for hypersensitivity after numerous stings, as well as situational factors, like where the sting was located, how much venom was injected, what kind of habitat the scorp had, how much/what it had eaten, and the time proximity between a current sting and the last one, esp if the scorps are used for milking, which is why all of this is very inexact, I'm just curious about the realistic vs. potential danger of a highly toxic scorp sting.
The reason I ask is that despite the studying I've done, I've never owned a dangerous scorp--I never had the need to keep something that could cause me serious harm. I've very careful, in fact, I've never been stung (knock on wood), but still, why risk it? The problem is that some of the scorps I'd like to study up close are harmful--for example, I've love a B. Jacksoni from Invertipet just for show, but on top of that, I'd really like to study a parabuthus sp. If this guy on tv is comfortable enough to hold them, perhaps the danger level is lower than I thought . . .
although now that I think about it, this could be like saying, since I saw someone do it on Jacka$$ it must be safe.
So what's the story???