On Mon, 26 Jul 2004 14:52:15 +0100, Victoria Clare wrote:

(Nick Maclaren) wrote in news:ce2c52$b4u$1
@pegasus.csx.cam.ac.uk:

There aren't any wild scorpions in the UK, though they might JUST
have established themselves in a few places (almost certainly in
buildings only). The furthest north they get naturally is southern
Europe. They have a sting (NOT pincers) as a tail, that curls up
over their back. Other than that, yes, they look a bit like
miniature lobsters.

Doing rather well in Kent, apparently:

http://arachnophiliac.co.uk/burrow/n...e_beasties.htm

I understand Pseudoscorpions are quite widely distributed in the UK,
though I've never seen one myself.

http://www.uksafari.com/pseudoscorpions.htm

Pseudoscorpions are tiny. Quite common in the leaf litter in beech woods,
they are harmless to humans (they only pose a threat to springtails etc).
And they have no sting, of course.

The best was to find some is to grab a good couple of handfulls of leaf
litter - not the very top inch, but below that down to a couple of inches,
and place it in a large funnel or tin can, with a coarse wire mesh a the
bottom to stop the leaves falling out and to let the creatures fall
through. Place a jamjar underneath and a strong light above (they'll crawl
downwards away from the heat and fall into the jar.)

Hopefully, you'll get loads of springtails and a couple of psuedoscorps as
well. Plus loads of other creepy-crawlies :-)

--
Tim C.