The Scorpion Suicide Myth: Why Alcohol Won't Make Them Sting Themselves

You've probably heard this one at a bar or seen it shared as a "crazy fact" on social media: drop some alcohol on a scorpion's back and it'll go berserk, stinging itself to death in a dramatic act of self-destruction. It's the kind of claim that sounds just plausible enough to believe—after all, scorpions are already creepy enough without adding suicidal tendencies to the mix.

Here's the truth: it's complete nonsense.

Why Scorpions Can't Sting Themselves to Death

Let's start with basic biology. Scorpions are immune to their own venom. This makes evolutionary sense—imagine if every time a scorpion used its primary defense mechanism, it risked killing itself. That would be terrible design, even by nature's sometimes-questionable standards.

The only way a scorpion's venom could harm it is if the venom were injected directly into the scorpion's nerve ganglion in a laboratory setting. In the real world, with alcohol or otherwise, this simply doesn't happen.

So What's Actually Going On?

When you pour alcohol on a scorpion, something does happen—just not suicide. The alcohol acts as an irritant, causing the scorpion to spasm and convulse. To an untrained eye, these jerky movements can look like the scorpion is frantically curling its tail and stinging itself.

It's not. It's having involuntary muscle spasms because you just doused it in poison.

Think of it like this: if someone threw acid on you, you'd flail around too. That doesn't mean you're trying to hurt yourself—you're reacting to a painful stimulus.

The Fire Version of This Myth

This myth has a cousin: the idea that scorpions surrounded by fire will sting themselves to death rather than burn. Same story, different irritant.

Scorpions are cold-blooded, so intense heat throws their metabolic processes into chaos. The result? Wild spasming that looks like deliberate self-stinging but is actually just their body malfunctioning from heat exposure.

Why Does This Myth Persist?

The scorpion suicide myth has staying power for a few reasons:

• It's dramatic and memorable—perfect for sharing at parties
• Scorpions already have a sinister reputation, so adding "suicidal when drunk" fits the narrative
• The spasming behavior genuinely looks like self-stinging if you don't know what you're watching
• It's been repeated so many times on "fun facts" lists and social media that it's achieved urban legend status

But repetition doesn't make something true. Scientists and scorpion experts have thoroughly debunked this claim, yet it continues to circulate as cocktail party trivia.

So next time someone tries to impress you with this "fact," you can set the record straight: scorpions don't commit suicide, they just really don't like being poisoned. Which, honestly, is pretty relatable.