New scorpion wrangling club holds first meeting
John NurdenA new scorpion wrangling club has held its first meeting on the Isle of Sheppey.
Scorpions are believed to have lived in the long stretch of wall that borders Blue Town High Street for more than 200 years after they stowed away on a shipment of granite from Italy.
Jenny Hurkett, from the Blue Town Heritage Centre, formed the club after advertising for a chief scorpion wrangler due to the previous post holder retiring, and was bombarded with applicants of all ages.
"We make children aware of what we have in our dockyard wall and island," she said.
"We need to protect their natural habitat, but it's also a lot of fun when you actually see a scorpion because they shine up under UV lights that the children get in their membership packs."
The club aims to meet once a month at the Blue Town Heritage Centre, with three of the elusive creatures spotted at the inaugural meeting this week.
Children receive training on how to protect the scorpions environment and collect free membership packs, which include an ultraviolet torch to make the scorpions glow in the dark and a membership card, in which they can keep a record of how many scorpions they find.
Outgoing scorpion wrangler, John Nurden, said he was happy to pass on the mantle to a younger team.
"It's a really quirky Sheppey tradition and it's always difficult to find a scorpion," he said.
"It's just wonderful that so many people are now interested in looking after the colony."
Daniel Oakley has been appointed the chief scorpion wrangler after hearing about the post when it was advertised last year.
He already runs a YouTube channel under the name of Tarantula Dan, which focuses on invertebrates.
"This is an opportunity to work with invertebrates on the island," he said. "I've spotted plenty of scorpions already and we found 10 when I came here with my daughter a few weeks ago."
The club aims to record the scorpions habitat and update research from over a decade ago, which suggested about 10,000 were living within the wall.
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