Scorpion found, turned over to Humane Society
A scorpion was found Friday on a Deerfield area farm, captured and turned over to the Dane County Humane Society.
Authorities speculated it might be an escaped pet.
A town of Oregon man, who asked not to be named, said in an interview that the scorpion was found during yardwork at his parents' farm.
The creature was captured -- carefully -- by putting an aquarium on top of it, then sliding cardboard underneath the aquarium and flipping it over, he said, adding that it didn't make any aggressive moves.
He then used duct tape to seal the aquarium, put it in his trunk and brought it to his home, where it spent the night in the garage.
He knew it was a scorpion, but only realized it was one of the poisonous varieties when researching it on the Internet Friday night.
"I realized it was not something to be playing with," he said.
He didn't have second thoughts about capturing it, though.
"There's kids and cats and dogs" at the farm, he said.
After he contacted authorities on Saturday morning, a Humane Officer came out and took possession of the scorpion.
There are about 1,300 species of scorpions worldwide, according to www.doyourownpestcontrol.com. Most are not poisonous, except for two species found in the southwestern states like Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Texas.
Scorpions are nocturnal, predatory animals that feed on a variety of insects, spiders, centipedes, and other scorpions. The larger scorpions occasionally feed on vertebrates, such as smaller lizards, snakes, and mice.
