Scorpions, Spiders, and Mites 



675 



head and 

 are compara- 



Pkoto l>y Highley. 



EGYPTIAN SCORPION. 

 A fairly large and venomous representative of the group. 



the united 



thorax 



tively short; but the 



abdomen is very long, 



and divided into a 



broad half, consisting 



of seven segments, 



and a narrow tail of 



five very movable 



segments, besides a 



sharp, curved sting at 



the extremity. There 



are from three to six 



pairs of eyes on the 



head and thorax, and 



in front of the body 



projects a pair of very 



large pincer-bearing 



foot-jaws. Scorpions 



are generally of a 



yellowish or black 



colour ; and the largest 



black scorpions of Africa and India sometimes measure as much as 9 inches in length. They are 



nocturnal creatures, hiding under stones, or in holes in the ground, or in crevices in walls during 



the day. They kill the insects and other small animals on which they feed with their stings, the 



sting of one of the large black scorpions, like that of the large tropical centipedes, being, as painful 



and dangerous as that of a snake." There are a few small and comparatively harmless species 



found on the shores of the Mediterranean, but most of the scorpions inhabit warmer countries. 

 The JOINTED SPIDERS are creatures 1 or 2 inches long, remarkable for having the head and the 



segments of the thorax 

 separated from each other, 

 so as to form distinct 

 divisions of the body. They 

 have rather long and very 

 hairy legs, and only one pair 

 of well-developed eyes, 

 another pair being rudi- 

 mentary. Some species 

 are diurnal and others 

 nocturnal in their habits. 

 They feed on insects, and 

 sometimes on small birds, 

 etc., and can inflict a very 

 painful bite. They are 

 found in South-eastern 

 Europe, Africa, Southern 

 Asia, and from the Southern 

 States of North America 

 south to Chili and Argen- 

 tina. 

 EGYPTIAN SCORPION. The FALSE SCORPIONS, 



Shows the sting uplifted for attack. O r BOOK - SCORPIONS, are 



Photo by Highley. 



