Scorpions are arthropods. They can be as small as 9cm long to a size of 20cm long. They are found all over the world except in Antarctica. They live on land including mountains and caves. Their bodies are divided into 3 parts: the head (cephalothorax), the abdomen (mesosoma) and the tail (metasoma). The head has a carapace which act as a protective cover or a helmet for the head. On the head there is also two pedipalps or claws and 4 pairs of legs. There is venomous stinger at the end of the tail. There are about 1750 species of scorpions, 25 of these species have venom that is strong enough to kill human. They have 2 venom glands that will produce venom which is very useful for hunting and self defence. That is why they are known as predatory arthropod animals.
Scorpions do not have bones instead they have exoskeleton which protect them from their predators. Baby scorpions have to shed their exoskeleton many times as they grow into an adult scorpions. They have 2 eyes on the top of their head and usually two or five pairs of eyes along the front corners of the head. The position of their eyes depend on the hardness or softness of the soil of their habitat.
Mother scorpions give birth to live baby scorpions. she does not lay eggs. She can give birth to two to more than 100 baby scorpions. On average she will give birth to around 8 baby scorpions. Baby scorpions look very much like their mum and dad.
People in Shandong, China eat fried scorpion. They are also used in Chinese medicine.