Natures wonders: Scorpion's defensive venom spray (Introduction)

by David Turell , Saturday, May 02, 2015, 01:47 (3492 days ago) @ David Turell

It is apparently done in controlled squirts when seriously threatened:-http://www.livescience.com/50681-venom-squirting-scorpions-blind-enemies.html?cmpid=NL_LS_weekly_2015-05-01-"Some scorpions are able to spray their venom, an ability they use defensively to try to temporarily disable predators, allowing the stinging arachnids to escape the jaws of death, a new study suggests.-"From skunks to bombardier beetles, a wide range of animals spray chemicals defensively. But only a relatively few species are known to squirt highly toxic venom when threatened, most notably spitting cobras.-****-"'The way they squirt it gives it a nice arc, covering a wider area and making it more possible to reach a predator's eyes," Nisani said, adding that the venom also becomes airborne and able to irritate the respiratory system, causing sneezing, runny nose and itchy eyes in humans. "When I milked scorpions, I had to wear a mask," Nisani said. "I developed hypersensitivity to" the venom.-"The results suggest that when faced with highly threatening predators, such as grasshopper mice and shrews, Parabuthus scorpions squirt venom in a way that creates a diffuse spray that maximizes contact with the eyes and respiratory system of their hunters. This potentially causes temporary blindness, pain and irritation that allows the arachnids to get away."-Convergence with cobras.