Arizona's Venomous Critters.

Arizona is a beautiful state with its warm weather and breath taking desert landscapes has brought many people from all over to reside in this sunny state. Although its beauty is breath taking it can come at a price. Nature has also decided to place a few of her most venomous creatures in the same place. Since they were here first before people discovered the beauty of this great state in which crossing paths with these unique creatures of mother nature is almost surely going to happen,

Arizona is the venomous capital of the United States. The critters I have listed use there venom primarily for subduing and killing there prey. They will how ever use there venom for self defense if they feel threatened. So here I have put together a list of a few of the most common critters in Arizona that will at some point in time cross paths with the people of Arizona.

Now here is a little nasty of nature that packs quite a punch. The scorpion is constructed with awesome hunting tools. It has pincher's to hold its prey and a long tail equipped with a venom sack and a stinger. This little beauty also has eight legs and can move very fast, climb most anything and hang upside down. If you think that closing your doors will keep this critter out of your home you could be dead wrong. This little creature has the ability to flatten out and compress its body to fit through the smallest cracks. Another great trick of the scorpion is the mothers bond to her live young. With live child birth the mother will then carry the young scorpions on her back. So if your thinking about walking around outside barefoot to put your toes in the sand don't.

The most common and deadly scorpion in Arizona is the bark scorpion it is light brown to yellow and almost transparent in color. It is also well known for the death of children under the age of four. This scorpion has a bad reputation for being aggressive when cornered or provoked.

Here is a real favorite of the reptile family. Natures little beauty and beast creation the Gila monster. The Gila monster with it's bright color scheme and being somewhat slow moving makes this reptile a child's must have, see what i found mommy appeal. This little guy has a monster bite like a steel trap that just wont let go. It's an extremely painful bite and when it sinks its teeth into you it releases a very toxic venom that in almost every case requires hospitalization. Now the bites have become very rare and no one has died from a bite in over a hundred years but this is still a critter to stay clear of, a do not touch creature.

Many species of bees that are found in Arizona present no threat. The two species of bees in Arizona that have been occasionally responsible for attacking humans are The European Honey Bee's and The Africanized Bee's. Bee's have defensive venom that's used to defend there hive and there queen. Africanized Bee's AKA Killer Bees have an exaggerated defense response and are easily irritated. It takes about nine stings per pound of body weight to result in a human death from an African Bee. Bees can only sting once in there lifetime and then they usually die afterwards so they don't just like to sting because it's something to do.

All Spiders are venomous but only some are dangerous to humans. The two spiders in Arizona that are generally considered dangerous to humans are the Black Widow and The Brown Spiders. There are five types of brown spiders and one of a kind Black Widow known in Arizona. Severe pain,respiratory distress,cramping can be associated with a bite from the Black Widow. Brown spider bites can go without notice for eight hours. Local pain and swelling may occur and eventually result in a necrotic ulcer (Death of body tissue and is not reversable) that's slow healing and may require reconstructive surgery. The Brown Recluse is known for this. So in the State of Arizona these little itsy bitsy spiders are none you want to mess with.

Did you know that Daddy Long Legs are not spiders and they are not venomous. It's true.

These slivering critters make my hair stand up and I never want to run into one but Arizona has thirteen types of rattlesnakes. Rattle snakes possess the most awesome venom delivery system in the snake world. They have folding,hollow fangs,which inject the venom deep into the victim.There also well known for the rattle that the tip of there tails posses. The western diamondback is the largest type of rattlesnake in Arizona and is responsible for the most bites and deaths in the United States.

The Mojave rattlesnake is another common type of Rattlers in Arizona. The Mojave is the most toxic type of rattlesnakes in The United States. Bites from rattlesnakes in Arizona are not a common thing, but deaths resulting from a rattlesnake bite are. Rattlesnake bites are very painful and may cause severe swelling and other health issues. Medical attention is needed immediately. So if your out in the desert and hear a rattle and your baby isn't around BEAWARE a rattlesnake is near.

There's a lot of poisonous critters in Arizona but it is a beautiful state and there's so much beauty to see and your chances of be bitten or stung is very rare. These are the critters that I know are well known.