Centruroides bicolor is a species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 of bark scorpion

Centruroides

Centruroides is a genus of scorpions belonging to the family Buthidae. Several North American species are known by the common vernacular name bark scorpion. Numerous species are extensively found throughout the southern United States, Central America, the Antilles and northern South America...

 from Central America

Central America

Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...

. Its specific name "bicolor" is from the Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 meaning "two colored" and refers to the markings of this species.

Range

This species is concentrated on the southern Pacific coast

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

 of Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....

 and Panama

Panama

Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...

.

Habitat

Within its range, C. bicolor can be found the forest

Forest

A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...

 understory

Understory

Understory is the term for the area of a forest which grows at the lowest height level below the forest canopy. Plants in the understory consist of a mixture of seedlings and saplings of canopy trees together with understory shrubs and herbs...

, where it can be found among the vegetation. It is also known to frequent houses and other building where shelter and food are abundant. It has been recorded from sea level

Sea level

Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...

 to 1,670 meters (5,479 feet).

Description

C. bicolor is a relatively large scorpion and grows up to 120 mm in length. It has a very showy coloration. Most of its body is yellowish in color, except for its blackish pincers, final tail segments, cephalothorax

Cephalothorax

The cephalothorax is a tagma of various arthropods, comprising the head and the thorax fused together, as distinct from the abdomen behind. The word cephalothorax is derived from the Greek words for head and thorax...

 and part of the abdomen

Abdomen

In vertebrates such as mammals the abdomen constitutes the part of the body between the thorax and pelvis. The region enclosed by the abdomen is termed the abdominal cavity...

. It has been described as "very beautiful scorpion "

Venom

A source at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Norwegian University of Science and Technology

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology , commonly known as NTNU, is located in Trondheim. NTNU is the second largest of the eight universities in Norway, and, as its name suggests, has the main national responsibility for higher education in engineering and technology...

 reports that medical literature provides no data on the effects of C. bicolor venom but warns that its sting "is probably very painful."

Captivity

Though one expert guesses that "this species is probably not kept in captivity by hobbyists", this species is indeed bred and kept as a pet

Pet

A pet is a household animal kept for companionship and a person's enjoyment, as opposed to wild animals or to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic or productive reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful...

.

Reproduction

Prior to mating, members of this species engage in a courtship dance that can last an entire day or more. As part of this ritual the scorpions repeatedly raise and cross their tails, push and pull at one another, and then separate. Eventually, after a series of contractions, the male produces an off-white spermatophore

Spermatophore

A spermatophore or sperm ampulla is a capsule or mass created by males of various animal species, containing spermatozoa and transferred in entirety to the female's ovipore during copulation...

, which contains sperm

Sperm

The term sperm is derived from the Greek word sperma and refers to the male reproductive cells. In the types of sexual reproduction known as anisogamy and oogamy, there is a marked difference in the size of the gametes with the smaller one being termed the "male" or sperm cell...

 and hardens on contact with air. After this packet of sperm is introduced to the female's genital opening

Cloaca

In zoological anatomy, a cloaca is the posterior opening that serves as the only such opening for the intestinal, reproductive, and urinary tracts of certain animal species...

 she becomes aggressive towards her mate and sometimes devours him in an episode of sexual cannibalism

Sexual cannibalism

Sexual cannibalism is a special case of cannibalism in which a female organism kills and consumes a male of the same species before, during, or after copulation. On rare occasions, these roles are reversed.-Prevalence:...

.

Gestation for this species takes 60 - 90 days. After being born, immature individuals instinctively climb up to the back of the mother and stay there until their first molt. Females have been observed carrying over fifty of their young in this manner.

Similar species

C. bicolor belongs to the Gracilis species group

Species group

A species group is an informal taxonomic rank into which an assemblage of closely related species within a genus are grouped because of their morphological similarities and their identity as a biological unit with a single monophyletic origin.-Use:...

. All of the species in this group are characterized by their long, narrow pedipalps and overall relatively large size. C. limbatus

Centruroides limbatus

Centruroides limbatus is a species of bark scorpion from Central America. Its specific name "limbatus" is from the Latin meaning "black-edged" and refers to the colored markings of this species.-Range:...

closely resembles C. bicolor but these two species can be discerned from each other by the color of the pincers as well as more subtle characteristics.