- [Voiceover] Of the nearly 1,500 scorpion species
in the world, only around 25 have a sting that is
potentially dangerous to humans.
And in the United States, the only one that packs
such a punch, is the bark scorpion.
- Ha, look at that!
There's a bark scorpion right on the underside
of this branch.
- [Man] You sure it's bark?
- I am 100% positive that's a bark scorpion,
they have a very long tail, extra long skinny pincers.
You don't need a robust set of pincers when you have
a venom that's so toxic, all it takes is one sting
and that prey is instantly doomed.
Now the other way that I can easily tell this is
a bark scorpion is that this is the only species
that likes to climb, and they actually practice
what's called negative geotaxis, which is hanging
upside down.
And this scorpion as you can see, is just perfectly
balancing there, which means it can move on the
top of this branch to the bottom of this branch
regardless and catch its food.
So if a moth comes in close, boom, he's gonna snatch out
with those pincers, inflict a lethal sting
and then he has his dinner.
Alright now scorpions are something that you would
never ever ever want to handle but what I'm gonna do now
is gently get this guy onto my hand to prove that scorpions
aren't out there just to sting you.
If I handle this scorpion gently, I'm pretty confident
that it's not gonna sting.
But if I am tagged, this is going to be extremely painful.
I'm Coyote Peterson and I'm about to free-handle
the most lethal species of scorpion in the United States.
Are you ready?
Here we go.
One.
Two.
Three.
Okay there we go.
That is the most venomous species of scorpion
in the United States.
And he's on my hand.
Alright this makes me a little bit nervous,
I'm gonna see if I can get him to just sit still.
That definitely gets your nerves going.
Now as long as I handle this creature gently
and don't apply any pressure, I believe that
I will be just fine.
Scorpions sting people when they feel threatened.
So let's say this species specifically, they love to hang
upside down underneath things.
It could be a piece of wood, it could be your lawn chair.
You come outside and you grab onto that and you squeeze
down on the scorpion, if it feels pressured,
like it's going to get squashed, it's going to sting
as a defense.
As you can see right now he doesn't have his tail
or his stinger in a defensive position.
He's just curious, he's looking around.
He says this is not a tree, this is different.
And for me this is also different.
And extremely nerve-wracking.
But the reason that I'm doing this is to prove that
these scorpions aren't just out there to sting you.
- [Man] How bad would it be if this scorpion
were to sting you?
- Okay there he goes, he's stopped.
If this scorpion were to sting me right now,
I would be in incredible pain for the next 48 hours.
I don't know how my body would react to the venom,
I could go into anaphylactic shock.
Not likely, but at the very least extreme pain
for 48 hours, depending how far the venom spread into my arm
I could lose use of my arm for a couple of days.
My tongue could swell up, I could foam at the mouth,
cramps in the stomach.
All sorts of bad stuff that you don't want to
have to deal with.
What I just want to do right now is stay as still
as possible.
The scorpion has found a spot where he feels comfortable,
I feel comfortable, and as you can see
he doesn't feel agitated, I'm being as gentle as I can
with him and I must tell you right now,
this is never ever anything I recommend someone go out
and try to do.
This is the most venomous species of scorpion
in the United States, and it's getting a little too close
to the edge of my sleeve.
Come on buddy, come back up this way.
Alright, at this point, I think he's getting
a little agitated, so what I want to do is get him
back up into the tree so he can continue hunting.
This has been one extreme experience with the most
venomous species of scorpion in the United States.
I'm Coyote Peterson.
Be brave.
Stay wild.
We'll see you on the next adventure.
- [Voiceover] Arizona's home to the only scorpion
anti-venom program in North America.
And they only administer treatment to around
100 people a year.
What's even more incredible is that no scorpion-related
deaths have been reported in Arizona for more than 40 years.
So the next time you see a scorpion, remember:
these arachnids are more afraid of us than we should ever
be of them.
As long as you give a scorpion space and respect,
there is virtually no chance it's going to sting you.
If you thought that was one wild adventure,
check out the time I was intentionally stung by a scorpion,
and don't forget, subscribe to join me and the crew
on this season of Breaking Trail.
- I'm Coyote Peterson, and I'm entering the strike zone.
One, two, three.
Ah!
Jeez, yep, he got me.