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Scorpions of Zihuatanejo

ORDER SCORPIONES

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Arthropods (Phylum Arthropoda)

-Chelicerates (Subphylum Chelicerata)

-Arachnids (Class Arachnida)

-Scorpions (Order Scorpiones)

-Suborder Neoscorpionina

-Infraorder Orthosterni

-Parvorder Iurida

-Superfamily Vaejovoidea

-Devil Scorpions (Family Vaejovidae)

-Subfamily Syntropinae

-Genus Mesomexovis


These scorpions are most commonly found in Mexico, especially in arid and semi-arid habitats. Small to medium-sized scorpions, typically a few centimetres long. Usually light to medium brown, tan, or gray, often with darker mottling that helps them blend into rocky or sandy environments. Their venom is considered mild and not medically significant to humans, usually causing effects similar to a bee or wasp sting (localized pain or irritation). Nocturnal hunters, emerging at night to prey on insects and other small arthropods.

Mesomexovis Scorpions

Mesomexovis (Genus)

Diet

  • Carnivorous, feeding on springtails, ants, termites, beetles, spiders, crickets, insect larvae, and other small arthropods.

  • Juveniles feed on even smaller invertebrates such as mites and tiny insects.

  • Nocturnal ambush predators that detect prey using highly sensitive sensory hairs on their legs and pincers before subduing it with a venomous sting.

Range

  • The genus Mesomexovis is endemic to Mexico.

  • Species occur primarily in western and southern Mexico, including the Pacific slope from Jalisco through Colima, Michoacán, Guerrero, Oaxaca, and adjacent regions, depending on the species.

  • Several species are known from Guerrero, making the genus part of the native scorpion fauna of the Zihuatanejo region.

Habitat

  • Inhabit tropical dry forests, pine-oak forests, thorn scrub, rocky hillsides, and secondary forests.

  • Usually found beneath rocks, logs, loose bark, leaf litter, and within soil crevices, where humidity is higher than in the surrounding environment.

  • Strictly nocturnal, remaining concealed during the day and emerging after dark to hunt.

Size

  • Total length: 2–5 cm (0.8–2.0 in), depending on the species.

  • Weight: Typically 1–5 g.

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