Found a baby scorpion in my house

Question: I recently found a baby scorpion in my house about a half inch long, I killed it and kept it fairly intact.

Is it common for these to show up in Northern California? Specifically, Sacramento. I have never found one before around here, but I will be contacting a pest control professional if I do.

Answer: According to University of California, Davis, Agriculture and Natural Resources, scorpions would be more common in Southern California than Northern California. There is, however, one species that can be readily found in Northern California and that is the California Forest Scorpion (Uroctonus mordax). I would need the specimen to conduct a scientific assessment and identification.

Some control methods you could easily exercise around your home are:

• Clean yard debris, logs, leaves, etc. from around your home.

• Trim back trees and bushes so they do not touch your home.

• Weatherstrip your doors and windows, caulk openings and make sure your screens are in a good state of repair.

For additional assistance, I would encourage you to give us a call and ask to have an Orkin Pro inspect and develop a scheduled treatment strategy to help keep your home pest-free.

More information on scorpion control.