Hey Dave, Q's for keeping C. exilicauda communally?

[Henry Kane]

Hey Dave. I'm wanting to set up my exilicaudas communally. I have 7 at the moment. Can I please trouble you for some tips? Do's and dont's? Any advice will be helpfull.

Thanks bro!

Atrax

 

[skinheaddave]

Don't know how much advice I can give, as nothing has gone wrong yet. Lots of hiding spots and lots of food would be about the only things I can think of. Have you checked out the pic of my tank in the enclosure thread? The bark along the back is siliconed in place and there are hiding spots behind it. The big piece of driftwood in the center covers the water dish and usualy has a few scorpions hiding under it. On both sides there are pieces of slate held up on supports and then partialy covered with sand. I have never seen anything happen with the one on the right, but the one on the left always has scorpions coming in and out and they have definitely opened up the entrance. The scorpions also occasionaly hang around the dried grass clumps (dried grass in florists' foam buried in the sand).

As for food, I throw in a bunch of smaller crickets every week. They usualy disapear after a day or so. Generaly speaking, these guys really are good at being communal. I have seen several incidents that would have sent my H.spinifer into viscious turf wars that barely phased my C.exilicauda. About the only time they do get into fights is over food items. A little tug-of-war and it is settled, though.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Henry Kane]

Hey, it helps, believe me. What is your Scorps to space ratio?

Atrax

 

[skinheaddave]

21 adults and now an unknown number of scorpionlings in a 20-gallon aquarium. I think the real measure of space for these scorpions should be surface area, though. Adding the surface area of all the substrate, bark, driftwood and grasses, it is actualy fairly large.

If you used something like egg crate, you could probably fit hundreds in the same space. Not that such an enclosure would be particuarily natural or appealing, of course.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Henry Kane]

Yeah, I'm gonna go for that (as) natural (as I can make it) look. Kug is gonna come over Saturday, maybe he'll give me a hand too. Speaking of, my neighbors are going to trip when they see that scary ass clown coming up the sidewalk. Yep, he looks like that all the time. It's true. You get used to it after talkin' to him for a minute or so. After a while you forget that you're talking to a psycho clown altogether. But he's cool, y'know? ;P
Thanks for the tips Dave.

Atrax

 

[skinheaddave]

And out of the two of you, the truly psychotic one is ... ?????

I'm jealous. You guys get to gather and do fun invert projects.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Henry Kane]

Originally posted by skinheaddave
And out of the two of you, the truly psychotic one is ... ?????

I'm jealous. You guys get to gather and do fun invert projects.

Cheers,
Dave

Mmmmm....not me.

Yeah, it's pretty cool knowing bug-folk here in town. If you're ever passing through, you are definitely welcome to stop in for a while. That would be cool, huh?

Later.

Atrax

 

[skinheaddave]

Very cool. It is very unlikely that I will be in that area, at least in the short-term future, but if I am, I'll be sure to drop by. Thanks for the invite.

Cheers,
Dave

P.S. Likewise, if you're ever in the Toronto area, be sure to pop by.

 

[Kugellager]

Cuttin' on a psycho clown when he's not around to defend himself is....prob the best way to do it

Hey Dave, with C.exilicauda wouldn't you also take into consideration the surface area of the bark which they climb? I would think that would make a significant difference in their case. Seems like the more climbing space the more you would be able to keep too...to a point. Your tank is a 20L and not a 20tall right?...I can't remember from the pics atthe moment.

Gary, I'll give you a hand if you want...could be fun. I am looking forward to seeing your collection tomorrow.

Man one of my H.arizonensis bit the dust...it had been going down hill for awhile but I found it deceased this evening. I have not had good luck keeping them for a long time. I think I will try to get species where I can get sub-adults or have a colony large enough to be self sustaining.

This is obviously one of our threads again as it seems no-one else is interested...eh...The Scorpion Triad?

John
];')

 

[Henry Kane]

Haha..."The Scorpion Triad"...I like that!

Bummer about your Desert Hairy. Don't worry though, you can try your hand with the 2 I'm giving you tomorrow. Hope you have good luck with them. If anyone can do it, you can. (*distraction from the subject of.....*)

Cuttin' on a psycho clown? :? I don't know anything about that...sorry. If I hear of anything about that stuff goin' on, I'll let you know, okay John?

Later. HEHEHEHEHE! :}

Atrax

 

[Kugellager]

Yeah...It sounds like from your description they are at 3rd instar...It would be interesting to see if I can succeed to get them to molt again....I will have to take good notes.

John
];')

 

[skinheaddave]

Originally posted by Kugellager
with C.exilicauda wouldn't you also take into consideration the surface area of the bark which they climb?

As I mentioned above, I do take into account the surface area of all the features. To make it better, the bark is not flat, so there are spaces behind it that are not siliconed. You get the entire front area, as well as a portion of the back. That piece of driftwood is another favourite hiding spot -- mostly they hang out upside down. It is a regular 20, not a 20 tall. It is also done so that there is a good 4-5 inches between the highest point of the bark and the bottom of the lid. Still, part of my routine is checking the underside of the lid before opening it. I don't THINK they can get up there, but you never know when some crafty scorpion is going to use a bit of silicone in one corner or invent a jetpack or something.

As for cutting down the clown, I ... so what's this deal with the H.arazonensis? You and Gary conspiring to do what few have done before? Sorry to hear about the one dying. How's everything else doing?

Cheers,
Dave

P.S. The invite to drop in if you're ever in the neighbourhood extends to you too, John.

 

[Kugellager]

Gary got a couple of juvie freebies he really doesn't want and said I could have them if I wanted....I know that success in trying to bring them to adulthood is slim but I'd like to give it a try.

If nothing else I may learn something that no one else has noticed...maybe...we'll see.

Most of the other scorps are doing well...I do have one of my M.martensii with an injured leg and the other has one injured claw...not sure how either of them got injured but they are very active at night and really crash(if a 2.5 inch scorp can do such a thing) around the tank. I think they only live 2-4 years total and I got them as adults...so they may just be old to begin with.

My Grosphus madagascariensis seem to be doing well...they are quite mellow and even chill out on top of one another...It might be interesting to have a larger colony...I have 3 now.

John
];')

P.S. The invite goes the same for you too.

 

[skinheaddave]

Okay, this scorpion triad thing got me thinking. I have attached the result. You guys want to do this or not?

Well, I have more confidence in you being able to succeed than almost anyone else I know. The difficulty of raising juvies is one of the things that's discouraged me from keeping that genus.

Do you suppose your M.martensii could have been fighting?

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Kugellager]

Actually that would make a cool patch Dave...I think we need to make a little thing like that that we could use like the smilies. It sounds like a fun idea to me. No-one else seem to have the scorp interest as much as us three.

The closest I have seen them to fighting is pushing at each other with their telson when one gets in the way of the other. THough I suppose it could be true as I am not watching them all the time.
But considering I have had them for 9 months now it is probably a significant percentage of their lifespan.


John
];')

 

[skinheaddave]

Here's the patch for you guys.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[MrDeranged]

Originally posted by Kugellager
No-one else seem to have the scorp interest as much as us three.
John
];')

Wrong, Wrong, Wrong. I just don't think I have anything significant to add to the conversation as all I have scorp wise is the S. maurus and P. imperator. I like scorps, it's just that as I have no room to lock them up in, I won't even think about buying all the ones I really want. Believe me, I enjoy living vicariously through you three though Once we're situated somewhere that I can lock up the verts, you can bet that the scorp collection will be growing as well.....

Scott

 

[skinheaddave]

Oh no you don't! I don't know how to draw squares.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[MrDeranged]

Don't squares have 4 sides??? I think they look like this....

Scott

 

[skinheaddave]

Yeah, but not everyone has your natural talent with geometry, Scott.

Cheers,
Dave