第 1076 號，共 1 402 號

Giant vinegaroon

Mastigoproctus giganteus

名字的由來： The name 'vinegaroon' comes from the strong vinegar smell of its spray, and 'whipscorpion' comes from its long, whip-like tail.1

無害對人無害。不用擔心。

毛毛蟲和其他蟲子

噴射或吐出吃：肉

對人的危險: 輕微跟蜜蜂螫差不多或更輕微。對人基本上無害。

The giant vinegaroon is a large, harmless-to-people relative of the scorpion, known for the vinegar smell it gives off when threatened. It lives in the southern United States and Mexico, where it hunts insects and other small creatures at night. It is useful to people because it eats scorpions and other pests.1

分布在

Southern United States (Arizona, Florida, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas) and Mexico1

北美洲

首頁

It lives in the southern US and Mexico at heights of 1380 to 1800 metres. It hunts at night and hides in places it can dig into and shelter in.1

長度

4 cm 到 6 cm (1,6 in 到 2,4 in)1

最高速度

大約 0,9 km/h（0,56 mph）

在陸地上, 粗略估計

牠吃什麼？

It feeds at night on insects such as cockroaches and crickets, as well as millipedes, other arachnids, worms, slugs and small frogs and toads. It holds prey with its large pedipalps while its chelicerae tear and bite.1

Giant vinegaroon 的照片 — Giant vinegaroon。照片：Jbjensen1。 CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.

怎麼認出牠

Body length is 40 to 60 millimetres, not counting the tail.1
Has a long, thin, whip-like tail at the back.1
Has two long front legs that it uses to feel around and sense vibrations.1
Has two large pedipalps (front limbs) modified into claws for crushing prey.1
When sprayed, it smells strongly of vinegar.1

毒液力量

噴射或吐出

牠會對攻擊者噴出或吐出刺痛的液體。

牠的毒液有什麼作用？

It is not venomous. From the base of its tail it sprays a liquid made of 85% acetic acid, the main component of vinegar. If the spray gets into mucous membranes or cuts, it can sting, and it can irritate the eyes.1

牠對人有多危險？

對人的危險: 輕微跟蜜蜂螫差不多或更輕微。對人基本上無害。

It seldom bites or pinches people. Its main risk is the acid spray, which can sting and cause eye irritation.1

牠害怕時會做什麼？

When threatened, it sprays acetic acid from the base of its tail.1

如果牠噴到你

被會螫人的毛毛蟲毛刺到時：用膠帶把毛黏起來，再清洗皮膚。不要搓揉。
被咬時：清洗並冷敷。如果傷者覺得不舒服或容易流血，要就醫。

一定要先打緊急電話（112、000、911）。這是一般急救指引，不是醫療建議。急救基本知識

注意安全

絕對不要碰、抓或捉弄野生動物，就算是很小的動物，就算牠看起來在睡覺或已經死了也一樣。
給牠空間。如果遇到了，保持冷靜，慢慢往後退，讓牠自己離開。
如果被牠噴到：保持冷靜，保持不動，打緊急電話（112、000、911）或趕快去醫院。記住牠的樣子，有照片會很有幫助。

牠不是想來抓你。牠用毒液來捕捉食物或保護自己，而且牠更想躲起來。更多安全知識

在世界上的哪裡？

非洲亞洲歐洲北美洲南美洲澳洲與大洋洲

牠有多大？

牠有多長？

跟 2 塊玩具積木排成一排一樣長

Giant vinegaroon 跟「你」比起來有多大？

只是在你的瀏覽器裡做算術。什麼都不會儲存，也不會傳送到任何地方。

牠有多快？

一隻陸龜 大約 0,3 km/h (0,19 mph)

Giant vinegaroon 大約 0,9 km/h (0,56 mph)

一個正在走路的人 大約 5 km/h (3,1 mph)

值得知道

小知識

Its common name 'vinegaroon' comes from the vinegar smell of the acid it sprays.1

It is an efficient predator of scorpions, and it is sometimes bought for that purpose.1

Males fight each other at night in fierce battles for the chance to mate with a female.1

It has eight eyes, but they are very weak, so it finds its way mostly by feeling with its front legs, tail and pedipalps.1

Raccoons, coatis, armadillos, skunks, bears, roadrunners, lizards and tarantulas may all eat it.1

It is sold in the exotic animal trade as a pet.1

破解迷思

迷思： Giant vinegaroons are dangerous and venomous to people.

真相： They are non-venomous and seldom bite or pinch people. The main risk is the acid spray, which can irritate the eyes or sting if it reaches cuts or mucous membranes.1

給毒液專家

學名: Mastigoproctus giganteus
類群: 毛毛蟲和其他蟲子
家人: Thelyphonidae2
排序: Uropygi
各大洲: 北美洲
寶寶: The female produces about 40 offspring, which she protects and feeds during their early lives. She reproduces only once.1
壽命: 大約 7 年1
對人的危險: 1 / 5: 輕微3