Do Birds Eat Scorpions? (Answered!)

Scorpions are predatory arachnids commonly found in deserts. With eight legs and noticeable grasping pincers, this is an animal that makes its presence felt.

As a result, it’s normal for animals to steer clear of scorpions to avoid getting pinched by those pincers.

For bird enthusiasts, you may wonder, do birds eat scorpions?

Most birds do not eat scorpions and prefer to stay away from them. However, there are specific desert birds such as the Southern Ground Hornbill that will attack scorpions before swallowing them.

If an average bird is left with a scorpion, it may not fare well due to how aggressive the anarchnids can be. It is a dangerous situation most birds are not going to want to deal with if they can avoid it.

This article will take a look at some of the reasons most birds do not eat scorpions.

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Reasons Birds Don’t Eat Scorpions

1. Increased Chance of Getting Hurt

This is the main reason birds don’t like eating scorpions.

There is an added risk associated with hunting these arachnids and that is enough for birds to want to avoid them. It’s easier for the birds to look for other insects that are easier to hunt and will not fight back aggressively.

If a scorpion gets a chance to attack, it will. This can lead to unwanted damage due to how strong their grasping pincers are.

Birds don’t have the ability to fend off these types of attacks and it can lead to grave injury. This is why you will notice smaller birds avoiding scorpions even if they see them in the desert.

Experts Say...

Birds prefer easier meals that are not going to fight back. This is why scorpions are not high on the list of animals birds will go out of their way to hunt. Only specific birds do such as the Southern Ground Hornbill.

In fact, studies show there are many birds that can hunt scorpions from a physical standpoint but prefer not to.

It comes down to not liking the idea of getting hurt because the scorpion scrambled away. This is why birds prefer to stay away from scorpions and look for simpler targets that are not going to fight back.

Scorpions don’t give up easily. They will want to attack and are going to do everything in their power to wriggle free including pouncing with their pincers.

This can lead to injury even if the bird manages to weaken the scorpion. Due to this, birds prefer to look at other options that are in the region.

2. Difficult to Hunt

There is a sense of difficulty that comes along with hunting scorpions and that can be frustrating for the average bird.

Birds don’t eat scorpions because the difficulty can be hard to manage.

Not only does the bird have to attack the scorpion but it also has to weaken it to the point of being able to take a bite. Otherwise, the scorpion is still going to have the chance to grab onto the bird and hurt it.

Scorpions will put up a fight and can hurt a bird to the point of serious injury if they manage the grab onto the bird with their pincers.

There is a balancing act that birds have to account for.

As a result, most birds refuse to eat scorpions especially when it comes to hunting them down.

3. Hard to Locate

A lot of birds can’t eat scorpions even if they wanted to.

This has to do with not being able to find scorpions walking around in their climate. Remember, scorpions are only spotted in hot climates that have deserts.

This is going to eliminate a lot of birds that prefer to stay closer to the water.

Other birds that do spend time in hot climates will look for easier targets. It is not easy to spot a scorpion and that does put an end to most birds using them as food.

Final Thoughts

Do birds eat scorpions?

Birds do not eat scorpions unless they are located in a desert. There are very few birds that attempt to eat scorpions including the Southern Ground Hornbill. Otherwise, most birds prefer to stay away from scorpions and look for easier meals.

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