There is much more to this place
than the weird atmosphere.
Some creature was watching, the
old crab could tell,
By the creepy feeling that ran
through his shell.
from: Kermit the Hermit
by: Bill Peet

Arizona Hairy Scorpion - Hadrurus arizonensis

We see these beasts around our desert every once in a while. They have even been found on the bottom of the pool at the Ridge, to be scooped out and revived some how to then scurry off back to the sand. When we first moved into our home 11 yrs ago, I found one of these critters from the 'underworld' in the guest room!! augh!!!!(The name Hadrurus has its origins in Hades, the underworld. )
Monday we discovered this one scrunched up on the asphalt near the entrance to Snow Canyon State Park. I took some pictures and then attempted to nudge him from his dangerous position on the road. He wouldnt have anything of it. He intended to stay right where he was. I thought about searching for a stick or some other such implement to move him and even went to look for one...but when I turned around to head back toward him...SPLAT!!!!...a big, black SUV sped past and wiped him out!!! ta ta Mr Hairy...now we have road kill for the ravens!!! oh well....I had good intentions. (Yes I am a little crazy...for even caring)

Thought I'd share some interesting facts about these arthropods. (are you asking yourself,"What the heck is an arthropod?" Here's what I learned-An arthropod is an invertebrate that has an exoskeleton (external skeleton), a segmented body, and jointed attachments called appendages.)

*Scorpions have a wide range of habitats- from sand dunes to rocky hillsides where they dig extensive burrows, often to 20 feet deep!

*All true scorpions glow bright green or yellow under a black light. Groovy!!!

*This is an aggressive and active scorpion, which, as with all scorpions, is nocturnal.

*Like all scorpions, the desert hairy scorpion gives birth to live young, which remain on the mother's back for a week or more before leaving.

*The hairs that cover these scorpions are used to detect ground and air vibrations.

*Commonly thought to be insects, scorpions are actually in the same family as spiders, ticks and mites; the arthropod family!!

ahhh....the things you can learn while gathering coral dust between your toes!!!