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Anatomy
Glossary
Diversity
Antiquity
Notoriety
Distribution
Life History
Ecology
Conservation
Dwindling Expertise
Venom |
Why study
scorpions?
There are many
compelling reasons to study scorpions. Scorpions are ecologically,
morphologically and taxonomically diverse, being distributed in most
terrestrial habitats and elevations on all continents except
Antarctica. They represent an ancient group of arthropods, dating
back to the Silurian Period over 440 million years ago. Some species
are medically important, and their venoms often cause human
suffering and mortality. For this reason, they have inspired fear
and fascination in humans for eons.
Today, many scorpion
species are threatened with extinction, yet little is actually known
about their biology. Although about 1200 species are taxonomically
known, many new species remain to be discovered. Currently, there
are few experts globally, and scorpions will not become better known
until more specialists are trained and the prospects for their
employment improve.
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based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under
Grant No. 0413453. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or
recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s)
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Foundation.
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