I caught a scorpion. Can someone ID? Also, care?

LirvA

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I was over at a friends new place playing some poker and having a smoke and we saw a scorpion on the porch and I caught it. There was also another on one the side of the porch against the concrete and we couldn't catch it cause it went down into a crack/burrow.

Curious what species it is. This is in central Oklahoma. Also curious how to care for it. Thanks.

Total scorpion newb fwiw.


Hope picture is good enough. I only have a cell phone camera (3.2 megapixels) and I don't believe it has a macro setting. Black berry bold 9700 fwiw.
 

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Ralph_moore84

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It is Centruroides Vittatus mesic .Temp.between 75 -80 F.Humidity 65%.They spend most of there time off the substrate.So provide something for it to climb on,and for it to hide.I use cork bark.
 

LirvA

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thanks. what should I use for substrate? Also how big an enclosure? It's maybe ... 2 inches?
 

Ralph_moore84

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I use zoo med eco earth,but you can use potting soil.Just make sure it has no pesticides or chemicals added to it.You could even use the dirt from your yard if you wanted to.As far as an enclosure.A scorpion doesn't have to have a real great big area.It just depends on if you want to display it,or just keep it.
 

LirvA

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what should I get from walmart for substrate? do they have zoo med eco earth? is it cheap???
 

H. laoticus

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what should I get from walmart for substrate? do they have zoo med eco earth? is it cheap???
I would just use the dirt that it was found next to. You can bake it in the oven to get rid of any unwanted creepy crawlies.
 

KoriTamashii

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what should I get from walmart for substrate? do they have zoo med eco earth? is it cheap???
Potting soil, as long as you make sure it has no chemicals or pesticides in it, will be cheap at Walmart. As far as I know, they do NOT sell Eco Earth, which is a bummer. It's relatively cheap at just about any pet store, however.
 

LirvA

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Small crickets to feed it? Think it's ok to feed it wild caught bugs for now?

Also, do you think anyone would trade a T or T sling for it?
 

Ralph_moore84

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Small crickets to feed it? Think it's ok to feed it wild caught bugs for now?

Also, do you think anyone would trade a T or T sling for it?
It would be cheaper on you to feed it wild caught bugs.If your wanting to trade it.Just post it in the for sale section of the Boards.I know that organic potting soil has no chemicals or additives in it.
 

LirvA

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can you microwave the dirt or does it have to be in the oven?
 

Ralph_moore84

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It would probably be better to bake it.Also you can keep alot of these guys together.Just make sure there are plenty of hides,and food for them.They usually pile up on top of each other,and breed easily.
 

LirvA

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OK what do you guys think of this setup? 1 Gal. rubbermaid deal, little clay water dish, 4 rocks put together as a hide (stable), one stick, and dirt from outside that I strained really well.
 

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LirvA

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Forgot to mention I gave it a real light misting before I put it in there.
 

Vfox

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I keep mine in a similar setup but I have some thin bark uprights for it to climb up on. Just be sure it can't reach the top of the enclosure from the upright bark chunks. I just used sugar maple bark from a tree in my yard. Centruroides vittatus is probably my favorite small US scorpion species. Good luck, I raise roaches too so I feed it small lateralis or 1i-2i dubias.
 

LirvA

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Are these a pretty popular species among scorpion keepers?
 

Canth

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They're pretty abundant. You can find them all over the southern states and not many people will trade anything for them. Yours is female by the way, I'm not sure if anyone had mentioned it yet.
 

LirvA

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Negative. Wasn't sure of the sex. How do you know its female?

How long do females live?
 

LirvA

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Also, from a little reading around, it seems these have kind of a nasty sting???
 

Vfox

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Also, from a little reading around, it seems these have kind of a nasty sting???
I would say the sting has the potential to hurt badly and cause localized swelling...but it's certainly not its Arizona cousin. Imagine a hornet sting or something of the sort, pain but not life threatening unless you're allergic.
 
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