Scorpions don't need to use their eyes to get a full picture of their surroundings: their body seems to function as a basic eye under ultraviolet light. To test the idea that the waxy cuticle covering a scorpion's body can detect light, Doug Gaffin of the University of Oklahoma in Norman exposed 40 of the arachnids to visible or UV light. He studied their behaviour both with and without "eye-blocks" -pieces of foil placed over their eyes to act like opaque glasses.
展开▼
