Highveld Lesser-Thicktail Scorpion

A small scorpion under 5 cm with the tail extended. An orange to yellow scorpion with a dark back. The arms are usually dark with yellow pincers. The tail and legs are also yellow with the last segment of the tail being dark.

Full name: Highveld Lesser-Thicktail Scorpion (Uroplectes triangulifer)

Classification: MILDLY VENOMOUS

A small scorpion under 5 cm with the tail extended. An orange to yellow scorpion with a dark back. The arms are usually dark with yellow pincers. The tail and legs are also yellow with the last segment of the tail being dark.

Can occur in a dark black/blue variation with red legs, often in high altitude areas of Mpumalanga. Probably one of the most common scorpion species in South Africa, widely spread in grasslands. Occurs in the Free State, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, North-west and Limpopo.It is found under rocks and debris usually on hard soils.

The sting of this species is painful but is not medically important.

Map indicating distribution of the Highveld Lesser-thicktail scorpion in Southern Africa
African Snakebite Institute