Vinegaroons

It is amazing to me to find insects that are so weird but useful to the environment. Vinegaroons rarely ever bite people, usually only biting people when they feel threatened. Vinegaroon bites, are not poisonous, but can still be quite painful, especially due to the acidic spray released by this spider. They are classified in their own unique order arachnid which includes ticks, scorpions and spiders. They tend to freak people out due to their often strange appearance and claw-like appendages. People call them whipscorpions, solifugids, sun or wind scorpions  and spiders but weird looking is the common name.

They hunt at night are carnivorous and emerge from holes to look for prey, which is crickets, earwigs, millipedes, cockroaches and other small things. I find them often in water meter, electrical boxes and damp areas. You can find them under tree bark, rocks and debris in yards. They get to be about 3 and 1/2 inches long, generally black and live about 4 years. Their lifecycle is about 4-7 years and pretty much live a solidary life. They also inhabit the areas of North America like Arizona and Mexico. They have eyes but their vision is limited.

As always please wear gloves when doing any yard work or garage work. Don’t collect stuff in piles in the yard and of course don’t stack stuff against the home or business.