# do scorpions play dead?



## snappleWhiteTea (Aug 5, 2010)

seems like my foresty scorpions play dead a little sometimes, and today one was really dead looking (all stiff) so i picked it up and it ran up my hand.


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## oogie boogie (Aug 5, 2010)

When I had some Liocheles Australasiae they do tend to play dead when disturbed. You can literally flip them over, and they wont move for a few seconds.


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## Anubis77 (Aug 5, 2010)

I kept a trio of Mesobuthus martensii a few years ago that I often thought were dead. A few Vaejovids I've kept did it too.


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## snappleWhiteTea (Aug 5, 2010)

oogie boogie said:


> When I had some Liocheles Australasiae they do tend to play dead when disturbed. You can literally flip them over, and they wont move for a few seconds.


yeah thats what mine have done before, then out of no where they bolt.


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## rd_07 (Aug 5, 2010)

snappleWhiteTea said:


> seems like my foresty scorpions play dead a little sometimes, and today one was really dead looking (all stiff) so i picked it up and it ran up my hand.


yup L.waigiensis and l.australasiae
when they do you can flip them over and they wont move unless you keep pushing them


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## Michiel (Aug 5, 2010)

snappleWhiteTea said:


> seems like my foresty scorpions play dead a little sometimes, and today one was really dead looking (all stiff) so i picked it up and it ran up my hand.



Yes, several species are know to 'play dead', or catalepsy as it is named officially. Babycurus jacksoni, Odonturus dentatus, Lychas burdoi  and Chaerilus rectimanus also show this interesting behaviour.


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## Trexer (Aug 5, 2010)

Wow i hope my emp was really dead then, cause i threw her in the bin lol. She hadn't moved for like 4 days and i was moving her around etc when i took her out and she was lifeless. She didn't smell though.


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## NevularScorpion (Aug 20, 2010)

cool thread I learn something new about scorps again


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## gromgrom (Aug 23, 2010)

Michiel said:


> Yes, several species are know to 'play dead', or catalepsy as it is named officially. Babycurus jacksoni, Odonturus dentatus, Lychas burdoi  and Chaerilus rectimanus also show this interesting behaviour.


+1 

IME, most smaller scorpions will do this, which i prefer to tarantula slings, which bolt and are gone in the blink of an eye!

i've had B. Jacksoni do it, even adult V. Spinigerus, H. Trilineus, S. Meansesis, etc. its a defensive mechanism.


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## groovyspider (Aug 23, 2010)

gromgrom said:


> +1
> 
> IME, most smaller scorpions will do this, which i prefer to tarantula slings, which bolt and are gone in the blink of an eye!
> 
> i've had B. Jacksoni do it, even adult V. Spinigerus, H. Trilineus, S. Meansesis, etc. its a defensive mechanism.


kinda like hog nose snakes or possums?


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## cacoseraph (Aug 23, 2010)

Trexer said:


> Wow i hope my emp was really dead then, cause i threw her in the bin lol. She hadn't moved for like 4 days and i was moving her around etc when i took her out and she was lifeless. She didn't smell though.


i only for sure count stuff as dead dead when it is stinky or crunchy


and even then, part of an animal can be dead and part alive... i had a dead head centipede that could still walk around.  eventually it's head started to stink and it could only walk in reverse.  the tail end still acted like a centipede even when the head got to stinking... the tail would strike at me when i stimulated it


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## AzJohn (Aug 23, 2010)

The kind of frightening thing is when some extremely venomous species play dead. Both Tityus silvestris and T bastosi play dead very well.


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## Michiel (Aug 24, 2010)

AzJohn said:


> The kind of frightening thing is when some extremely venomous species play dead. Both Tityus silvestris and T bastosi play dead very well.


Tityus tamayoi ( avery small species, smaller than T.silvestris and T.bastosi) also exhibits catalepsy. Last saturday I was feeding the scorps and found a T.tamayoi lying on a piece of bark, with the metasoma almost completely stretched. So I was like :Oh no, dam#ed etc etc and picked the scorp up with my forceps, it didn't move when dangling in the air, but when I layed it back on the substrate, it came to life and ran under the cork like greased lightning. So yes, this can be tricky! So, even when very venomous specimens look dead, keep working with forceps! Just to be safe.


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## whitewolf (Aug 24, 2010)

Man I hate that. 1 of the 3I LQ's do it to me all the time. I had just had 1 of the 3 actually die, as in it was just pieces the day before. I went down to check the others the next day and thought dang another one. I poked it with the tongs, flipped it over, blew on it, and slightly moved the sand and got nothing. If it hadn't molted a week before I wouldn't have touched it. Generally if I maneuver the container to shift the sand they will move. Figured ok it died too and went to tail it to put it in a smaller cup till it fell apart. Soon as I grabbed the tail it darted off. I liked to jump out my skin even though I knew scorpions did that...


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