Welcome to the scorpion lab at the University of Oklahoma. Our research is focused on understanding the sensory processing, behavior, and navigation of scorpions. We use behavioral, electrophysiological, and computer modeling techniques to characterize the sensory capabilities of scorpions with the aim of understanding their behavior in nature.
Doug Gaffin – University of Oklahoma
Hannah publishes mechanosensory paper
Peg mechanosensors show graded responses.
Click to review Hannah's paperScorpion Navigation
Navigation by Familiarity with a Local Sensor.
Press to see an animation of the NFLS model.
Battle in the sand
Sand scorpions tussle in an epic battle of selection. These animals are cannibalistic.
Finding your place...
Check out Conner's undergraduate honors thesis. He describes a clever way to pinpoint a place in an indoor space based on a familiarity algorithm.
Go to Conner's Honors Thesis.
Learning Walks?
Scorpions were videoed building burrows in mounds of sand and engaging in putative learning walks. The scorpion shown here was photographed under ultraviolet light; the crystal on its back reveals the scorpion’s location when filmed under infrared light.
JEB Paper