# @nationalparkservice on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/CuFnnE_vRsR
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/21021681-nationalparkservice-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/thumbnails/7bee079d76.jpg
- **Posted:** 2023-06-29T20:31:56.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** National Park Service (@nationalparkservice) — https://gondola.cc/nationalparkservice

## Caption

Cross between a spider and a scorpion that shoots “vinegar” from a “whip?” Fun.

Meet the vinegaroon. What’s a vinegaroon, you ask? Well, it’s not a macaroon with shredded coconut and hint of vinegar (Yeah, you’re not this week’s star baker). It has nothing to do with singing songs about misty highlands and the mysterious Brigadoon. Give up? It’s an arachnid. Also known as a “whip scorpion” because of its whip-like tail. Unlike scorpions, the vinegaroon doesn’t sting; it just shoots acid at you that smells like vinegar, hence the name vinegaroon. Makes sense. 

Vinegaroons are no threat to humans. Yeah, there’s the acid thing (think eye irritant) but they are not venomous. Like most things, they are relatively benign unless you annoy them. They can also pinch with their heavy mouthparts (pedipalps) to protect themselves.

Vinegaroons are nocturnal and can't see very well. Wow, that was blunt. They hunt millipedes, scorpions, crickets, cockroaches, and other invertebrates by sensing vibrations with their long, thin front legs. Most commonly seen in the desert, this vinegaroon was taking a stroll around the Chisos Basin campground at Big Bend. 

Image: Large vinegaroon showing thin "whip" tail; long, thin front legs; and heavy mouthparts that serve as pincers. NPS/CA Hoyt

#Vinegaroon #Whipscorpion #ChihuahuanDesert #DesertCreatures #BigBend #nationalparks #arachnids

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 105,463
- **Shares:** 0
- **Comments:** 1,727

## Credits

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National Park Service | @nationalparkservice | https://gondola.cc/nationalparkservice | Government Organization |

## Tags

whipscorpion, desertcreatures, arachnids, vinegaroon, nationalparks, chihuahuandesert, bigbend

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