Keizer Fire District helps concerned mom who found scorpions in container at playground

Four scorpions were brought to the Keizer Fire District Wednesday after a concerned woman found the abandoned arachnids in a container at an area park.  

The scorpions were left near a playground inside of a Red Vines licorice container. A worried mother picked them up around noon and brought them to the fire district. No one has claimed them. 

"My office manager said 'Chief, you gotta see this', " Keizer Fire District Cheif Jeff Cowan said laughing. 

Affectionately named Timmy, Lynn, Ted and Jeremiah by fire staff, the arachnids were confirmed to be Pacific Northwest Forest Scorpions, or Uroctonus mordax, a species native to the Willamette Valley. 

After alerting Keizer Police and city officials, the scorpions were given to the Oregon Department of Agriculture, who maintains a staff of professional entomologists — but not before taking some portraits of their new-found friends.

Under the entomologists' care, the scorpions will travel for outreach events like the Oregon State Fair.

"They're becoming goodwill ambassador to teach people about native species like scorpions," Cowan said. "They'll be like celebrities."

The Pacific Northwest Forest Scorpions are nocturnal, and therefore uncommonly seen, according to Tom Valente, an entomologist with the Insect Pest Prevention and Management program at the Oregon Department of Agriculture.

They are most often found on south or west-facing slopes, under rocks or logs on the ground, as they prefer moist environments. They are not found in desert conditions.  

The species is not aggressive. Though they can sting, they prefer to play dead when disturbed.

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Invertebrates like scorpions, spiders, millipedes and roaches do make quiet, easy-to-care-for pets or school projects, but Oregon has a “white list” of invertebrates approved by the Oregon Department of Agriculture that can be brought into the state without a permit.

Any exotic invertebrate not on the approved list requires a permit to ship into the state. Visit the Insect Pest Prevention and Management website to see a list of approved invertebrate species. 

Virginia Barreda is the Breaking News Reporter with the Statesman Journal. She can be reached at 503-399-6657 or at vbarreda@statesmanjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.