How Does a Scorpion Paralyze Prey?

Scorpions are eight-legged arthropods -- they have no internal skeleton, but are encased in a segmented exoskeleton -- with recognizable body features: a pair of grasping claws, a tail curved over the back and a venom-injecting barb. There are close to 2,000 different scorpion species found on six of the planet's seven continents. Although only 30 or 40 species possess a poison strong enough to kill humans, all scorpion species are believed to produce venom.

  1. Habitat

    • Scorpions are rugged, adaptable creatures with a wide habitat range. Although commonly thought of as desert dwellers, scorpions can live in most terrestrial habitats including forested and mountainous territories. Scorpions have developed the unique ability to change their metabolism rates as a means of survival, which means they can live almost anywhere that has soil they can burrow into. When food is scarce, a scorpion can slow its metabolism to as little as one-third the usual rate. This adaptation allows scorpions to survive in remote areas on as little as a single insect per year, if necessary.

    Diet and Eating Habits

    • Scorpions are nocturnal creatures. They find shelter beneath rocks or in cool underground holes during the day and come out to hunt at night. Scorpions prey on other arthropods and insects. Occasionally, large scorpion species will hunt and kill small lizards and mice. A relatively inactive lifestyle combined with an efficient food storage organ allows scorpions to consume large amounts of food during one offering.

    Killing Method

    • Scorpions paralyze and kill their prey by grabbing hold of insects or animals with their pincers -- or grasping claws -- and using their tail-barbs as weapons. Scorpions inject venom from their tails into the body of their prey, subduing their target within seconds. Most scorpion species have their own unique venom and toxicity -- some are more lethal than others. Newborn scorpions begin producing venom immediately following birth and can oftentimes inject a target with the same amount of venom as their adult parents.

    Neurotoxins in Venom

    • Although scorpion venom is highly effective in bringing down prey, it is only used in moderation because of the large amount of energy required to produce it. Scorpion venom is comprised of neurotoxins that inhibit various channels in charge of controlling the prey's nervous and muscular systems, rendering prey paralyzed or dead just a few minutes after being pricked. Specifically, scorpion toxins attack the prey's voltage-gated sodium channel -- a protein responsible for rapid electrical signals in critical nerve and muscle cells.