Fossil fragments suggest UK was home to world's largest scorpion 400 million years ago
By
Eleri Griffiths, Oscar Edwards
Summary
Fossil fragments discovered in the UK suggest that Praearcturus gigas, a scorpion species that lived around 400 million years ago, may have been the world's largest scorpion. Expert Howard explains that while they only have fragments from three sites (not a complete animal), one claw alone measured about 16cm, comparable to or larger than modern giant scorpions. The body length is estimated at about one metre. Howard also clarifies that sea scorpions (eurypterids) are a different extinct group of arthropods, not the same as this land scorpion.
Source
bskyFossil fragments suggest UK was home to world's largest scorpion 400 million years agobbc.co.ukKey quotes
· 3 pulledWe're working with lots of fragments, so we can't say precisely how big
We can't just give you a measurement of how big it was from the end of the pincers to the end of the tail
One claw alone measured about 16cm - similar to, or larger than, modern giant scorpions
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