How to kill a scorpion

You associate scorpions and other nasty insects with the summer in Provence. However in reality the worst time of year is now. This is when the surviving insects, the kings of their particular food chain, start crawling out from beneath the rocks in a desperate attempt to escape the encroaching cold of winter.

Last night as I shut the door I came face to face with the most enormous scorpion I have ever seen. It was at least the length of my index finger and had crawled up the wall to eyeball level. It waved its tail in a friendly hello and I ran to the kitchen searching for the appropriate implement to kill it with. Usually with insects I am content to sweep them away with a brush, but scorpions are different - you never know when these menacing silent creatures are going to slide beneath your bedclothes, and with a young child in the house, extermination is the policy.

Since living in Provence I have practiced many different methods of killing scorpions. I started with a hammer which was particularly effective at cracking their tough metallic hides but also good at breaking tiles. I moved onto a soup ladle. Less destructive to the floor than a hammer but also less effective - at least two good whacks are required, and even then the scorpion often manages to scuttle off nursing a sore head. Barbecue tongs are good at slow crushing but there is always the danger that the scorpion will run up the metal and onto your arm. 

In conclusion by far and away the most effective, is my current method - the point of a knife. Inserted into the centre of the body the scorpion is pinned in place. There’s no danger of it escaping or falling to the floor onto my feet. There’s about 2 seconds of movement and then the deed is done.

Comments

[Deborah Rees]

This rings all too true...
Our favoured method of extermination is The Birkenstock sandal, size 11 (mens range) - all scorpion sightings now result in a cry for "The Birks of Doom"!

(Caseneuve)

[Harry]

Kill it the way you would a lobster. Actually, they're not bad to eat. Have had them in Morocco!