Look-Alikes
Posted by Stefanie Forcella on September 5, 2005
Q: Today while hiking in the badlands of Eastern Montana my husband and kids came across a very small scorpion. Maybe an inch to inch one half long with pinchers and a tail with a stinger. It was light in color with something that looked like dark stripes going across.
It was under a flat rock and had a moth that it had killed. What kind of scorpion is it and are they found quite frequently in Montana.
Habitat: forest/open woods
State: Montana
Habitat: forest/open woods
A: When we think of scorpions, we think of places like Arizona where it's hot and dry. But there are scorpions living as far north as southern Canada too. I think you saw the Northern Scorpion, Paruroctonus boreus, that is found in Montana. I've included a website for you to look at and see a photo of what you may have encountered. Scorpions are not all that common in Montana but if you look in the right places, like beneath rocks and logs, you'll certainly find a few.
Thanks for your quesiton.
John Wiessinger ( September 6, 2005)