Feeding grasshoppers to Scorpions....

Jaffster

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
May 30, 2007
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178
I went to the local pet store tonight to have a look around and found they had bought in a bunch of Grasshoppers, selling them as pets.

Had a quick look, thought they looked quite awesome and would love to see a Scorpion tackle something around the same size as it.

So I payed my money (after receiving a story from the woman serving me, on how to keep grasshoppers alive and what they need to eat etc :) ) and took it home to feed to my p.imperator.

I dropped in the grasshopper and I witnessed my Scorpions first ever use of it's tail to kill it's prey. She only managed to eat around 1/4 of it, felt a bit guilty as it's gone to waste but it was really worth the money I paid to watch it. Shame I didn't get my video camera out :(

Anybody else fed theirs live grasshoppers before?
 

Thaedion

Arachnoangel
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Nov 20, 2006
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894
I take it that you found your escapee...

The only grass hoppers I've ever fed, I tong fed to them, it would of been nicer to witness what you saw. Too bad there wasn't any vid... The only time I ever saw an envenomation is with a Heteromertus I owned she stung a hisser.
 

Aztek

Arachnoprince
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May 22, 2007
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I fed it a cicada.

The buzzing/flapping of it's wings provoked it to sting it.
I had it recorded but decided to delete it before I found this site.

Oh yeah, I noticed pandinus stick their stinger in their and hold it for a while, while other scorpions hit and retreat. Is there more that keep on flooding?
 

~Abyss~

Arachnoking
Old Timer
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Mar 28, 2006
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you gotta remember emp venom is not that potent. In fact he'd probably taken it down no problem without the sting but your right i've noticed this as well.
 

Mark Newton

Arachnobaron
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Mar 9, 2007
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Just about all my scorpions sting their prey, often more than once. What is really interesting is watching a desert scorpion deal with an ant that is too small to sting, but really needs to be dead to eat. One of our obligate desert burrowers specialises in ants and builds an ant trapping burrow entrance. While the ant is held in the chela it is dragged back and forth in the sand and then passed to the other chela and dragged some more, this back and forth passing of the ant keeps up until the scorpion is satisfied the ant is dead.

Feeding a grasshopper is a great idea...scorp will love it. I sometimes feed spiders too, scorps love em. Only those that occur in their natural environment though.
 

Jaffster

Arachnoknight
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May 30, 2007
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I take it that you found your escapee...
Heh. No, this was his mate! This is the female I brought home for him.

Yeah, the sting went in and stayed in there for a good 5 seconds or so. I just took some pictures of the carcass but I don't have my USB cable. Pictures to follow. She seems to have sucked through the insides from the tail. The shell is practically empty of the grasshopper. When I picked it up, it was squishy.

Infact, my girlfriend was upset that she didn't get to see it so I've promised her that I'll buy another one next weekend.
 

nikesh

Arachnopeon
Joined
May 31, 2007
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17
wicked im going to get a few grasshoppers next time i need to buy some crickets
 

~Abyss~

Arachnoking
Old Timer
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I've tried grasshoppers before too and have not gotten an emp to sting. It did sting a wasp, and a huge roach i found.
 

Jaffster

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
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May 30, 2007
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178
I came to the enclosure and this is what I found lodged against the front of the tank:









What a waste!
 

8ball

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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Jun 7, 2006
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353
I always feed mine grasshoppers their everywhere here
i dont feed them ones the same size as them though usually about half their size
 
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