Abhorsen
Arachnoknight
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Hi, can you show me pictures of your dessert scorpion enclosures? I will be getting Parabuthus spp. I just want to see what kind of enclosures and substrate you're using. Thanks!
Dessert Scorpion Enclosure
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Red Eunice
Arachnodemon
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2.5 gallon aquarium.
Sub is a 60/40 mix of excavator clay and sand. Packed firmly and dried prior to adding decoratios and scorpion.
Species: H. arizonensis
Sub is a 60/40 mix of excavator clay and sand. Packed firmly and dried prior to adding decoratios and scorpion.
Species: H. arizonensis
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Abhorsen
Arachnoknight
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hi, what's the exact dimension of your tank? and how many inch of substrate is recommended?
although Im new to this, I thought i would give my 2 cents since i've been doing some research on the care of these little guys. I would suggest getting a 5 gallon tank(16x8x10), which are rather cheap at your local pet store. I got mine for 22 bucks, for substrate I went with calci sand(20lbs) and excavator clay (5lbs). I mixed it all together and once it was mixed, I put about 20 ounces of warm water and mixed it up to make all the sand/clay wet. Once that was done, i packed it down pretty good, but don't push too hard just to make sure you don't break the glass on the bottom of the tank. You can also make caves and stuff with the substrate if you want or you can just let the scorpion do all the digging. Before you put the scorpion in the tank, I would put heat lights or just leave it in the sun to dry out the substrate for maybe about 12-24 hours and then put in your hides, rock, etc. then the scorpion should be ready to go in. just remember that they don't need much humidity(20%) and I would keep then between 75-80 degrees. Here is a shot of my tank.(note i upgraded to a 10 gallon tank(20x10x12))
Red Eunice
Arachnodemon
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Tank 12"X6"X8" (LWH)
3"+ of substrate.
Mine are 2 1/2", one dug its burrow the entire length along the bottom. The other has a short burrow about 2" beneath the surface. I spoke with a scorpion breeder, at a reptile show, that offers sub depth 1" deeper than the scorpions length. It depends on the individual specmen as to how deep it wants the burrow. So far I'm 50/50 with mine.
Btw, if you're on a budget, use play sand sold at DIY centers. Much cheaper than sands sold at LPS and works just as well.
Another site to check out is All Scorpion Archives. A lot of info on specific species, care, feeding, breeding and etc.
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Here's my 5.5 gallon setup.
No scorp yet though.
No scorp yet though.
Abhorsen
Arachnoknight
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Nice setup, do scorps really need a deep substrate? is that enclosure good for 7i parabuthus spp? thanks!
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I read that they use as much and as deep as they can go.
@viper69 shared this (or something similar with me awhile back):
http://palaeo-electronica.org/content/2012-issue-1-articles/192-neoichnology-of-scorpions
Is a crazy long read, but very interesting (I'll admit that I skipped around a bit).
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Yep that's the link!
Summoned into the Scorpion forum, wow I feel special as I've never owned one but think they are quite cool! That's true I found that on the net, I thought it was pretty interesting data. I've always speculated that different sub for a T MIGHT have them build different burrows in some fashion.
When I came across this for their cousins, I thought it was pretty cool.
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@bryverine Different species will burrow to different depths, and individuals of each species will in turn burrow at different depths. Not all species will burrow that deeply but certain obligate burrowers (like H. arizonensis) really do need a good several inches of burrowing substrate.
@viper69 You should definitely acquire some scorpion specimens. Let me know if you would like any tips.
@viper69 You should definitely acquire some scorpion specimens. Let me know if you would like any tips.
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Thanks Darkness, I almost pulled the trigger on a USA species, I believe H. arizonensis, but didn't as I truly no very little about scorp husbandry. If I haven't researched an animal, I don't buy it. How do you like them compared to their cousins the Ts?@bryverine Different species will burrow to different depths, and individuals of each species will in turn burrow at different depths. Not all species will burrow that deeply but certain obligate burrowers (like H. arizonensis) really do need a good several inches of burrowing substrate.
@viper69 You should definitely acquire some scorpion specimens. Let me know if you would like any tips.
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I have more H. arizonensis specimens at the moment than any other Scorpion species in my collection. I feel like I am swimming in them haha.
H. arizonensis would be a great starter species for you (or anyone really). They generally have a fantastic feeding response and this species is a lot more active than many of the others (and certainly more active than almost all Tarantulas). My mature and immature females and males will generally spend almost every night wandering around and digging somewhere or expanding their burrow. One of my H. arizonensis palllidus likes to sit on top of a piece of cork with her chela hanging over the edge like she's lounging by the poolside. They are exactly like normal H. arizonensis but are more yellow on top and other areas of the carapace and body instead of the typical brown and other hues found on the regular variety. But care and behavior wise they are identical.
I feel like my Tarantulas get tired just looking at them moving around so much all the time while they sit there like rocks.
The only time that they are not active is in the dead of winter. Between late October / early November until late March / early April they go into a "diapause" period and they disappear. I won't see any of them now until the spring.
Care wise they are not much more difficult than most Tarantulas. They definitely need several inches of burrowing sand/clay mixture though as they are obligate burrowers. In terms of temperatures they are pretty hardy. Mine are in the mid to high 70s in the summer and in winter they are in the mid 70s during the day and it drops to the mid (sometimes low) 60s at night (not by my choice mind you). I have yet to have an issue in all the years I have been keeping them although I have never kept any very young instars.
Actually that brings up another valid point. This species is notorious for being difficult to get to molt in captivity. My advise for you would be to acquire an adult specimen. They are reasonably long lived (20+ years) as adults so it would not be a wasteful investment from that standpoint. Other species do not live as long. KellySwift, KenTBG, and all the usual well known vendors typically will have them and you can email them directly if they have adults.
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