Brazil: Scorpions are growing rapidly in major cities, causing 133 deaths by 2024

Published May 8, 2025

Tridge summary

A study has found that scorpion stings in Brazil have increased by 250% from 2014 to 2023, with over 1.1 million reported. This surge is attributed to rapid urbanization, which provides scorpions with suitable habitats and a reliable food supply. Some species of scorpions can survive without food for up to 400 days and can reproduce without mating. Provisional data for 2024 shows that scorpions caused nearly 200,000 stings and 133 deaths. Researchers predict that 2 million new cases are expected between 2025 and 2033. The stings cause symptoms such as pain, burning, swelling, redness, tingling, and nausea, and can be fatal, especially in children and the elderly.

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Original content

According to data from Brazil's notifiable disease information system, more than 1.1 million stings were reported between 2014 and 2023. According to the study, published in the journal Frontiers in Public Health, the number of stings increased by 250% between 2014 and 2023. A yellow scorpion found in a house in Itabuna, northeastern Brazil - Photo: Alamy The study attributed the rise in scorpion stings to rapid, unplanned urbanisation - such as slums - characterised by high-density housing and poor waste management. While urban areas are encroaching on wild habitats where scorpions already live, this is also creating new environments for the animals to thrive. “Cities happen to provide everything scorpions need: plenty of shelter (in walls, sewers, rubble and construction debris), constant warmth and a reliable food supply in the form of cockroaches and other urban invertebrates,” said lead researcher Manuela Berto Pucca, associate professor at São Paulo State ...

Source: Voh