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- Jun 26, 2003
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I am currently in the process of making a website that will contain lots of helpful hints on the keeping of scorpions. Here is the first "article" I wrote for it tonight. Likely not the final version as I only spent like ten minutes on it, but hopefully it helps some one out!
General Care Info: Affordable and Effective Housing
Some people prefer aquariums or Kritter Keeper type things to house their scorpions in. If you are on a budget, or need to house a large number of scorpions, the methods presented here will be very beneficial to you. Some people complain that Sterilites are not clear enough to see through. However, if properly done you should be able to take the lid off at any time and take a closer look at your specimen, without the risk of escape.
Step 1) Locate your plastic box. Rubbermaid containers are fine, but the walls are a little too thick, and can be harder to drill/melt holes into. I prefer to use Sterilite containers; they are extremely cheap, and available at almost all major retailers. What size you choose is entirely dependent on what you plan on housing. This is the size I use to house either large single adult specimens, or colonies of smaller species.
Step 2) Create ample airflow by drilling or burning holes into your container. My preferred method involves a pair of needle nose pliers, a nail, and a lighter. In my opinion drilling is too time consuming and creates quite a mess. Using this hot nail method you grab the nail firmly between the tips of the pliers. Hold the nail over an open flame (lighter or a candle) for 30 seconds or so. Then take the hot nail and carefully poke ample air holes on all sides of the container. The holes should look something like this:
I usually put more holes than what is pictured. There are more around it on all sides.
Step 3) Interior design. Now, much of this is up to you. I prefer to use either natural cork bark, or cork board (which can be located at most hobby stores such as Michael’s or A.C. Moore). If it’s a bark scorpion, you obviously want to provide more vertical climbing space. If you’re housing more than one specimen in the container, it’s a good idea to provide extra hides. Choice of substrate is up to you, and I will cover this more in depth in other care articles. Pictured here is my breeding colony of adult H. judaicus. Note the number of hides, substrate mixture of peat moss and sand, and the access to water.
Step 4) Heating and Racking. One of the most convenient things about using these Sterilite containers is that they are very easy to stack. If you have a temperature controlled area, then just stick them in there. If not, a closet shelf makes a convenient storage area. Place the containers on the shelves and point some infrared heat lights at them. Be sure you mist frequently for the tropical species. A digital thermometer comes in handy at this point, as do light fixtures with adjustable power levels.
Conclusions Sterilite and Rubbermaid containers come in a huge variety of shapes an sizes. In my opinion they are the perfect housing for any type of scorpion. They are nearly escape proof, just be sure the lid is securely snapped on, and that for the most part a scorpion doesn’t have ability to reach like lip of the cage. This is done by the strategic placement of hides and climbs. Details on how I house juveniles in a similar fashion will he found in a future article.
General Care Info: Choosing a Substrate
This section could get pretty complicated, so I will attempt to keep it as simple as possible. You have a few very reliable selections to choose from. The first is coco coir. This stuff comes in bricks (which then need to be hydrated) at your local pet store for around $5 a brick, but can be had for cheaper online from suppliers like LLLreptile, and the Bean Farm. This my substrate of choice and it used in some form or another in the majority of my cages. You can also acquire pure sphagnum moss at most home and garden centers, one bag will go a long way, just make sure it is pesticide free.
For topical (humidity loving) species, I typically use a well hydrated mixture off 100% pure coco coir. For semi-arid species I use a mixture of coco fiber and Reptisand (comes in many colors, available at any pet store).
I vary the sand/coco ratio depending on just how dry I want the cage to be. My general mixture is about 40% Reptisand to 60% coco coir. Desert species go on 100% Reptisand, which I chose mostly for the variety of colors, but playground sand from Lowes will work just as well. I will go in to further detail about substrate once I finish individual species care sheets.
General Care Info: Gear you’ve got to own!
Now that you’ve got housing out of the way, time to move on to some gear that I find indispensible. First off, a spray bottle is a must. You need a good spray bottle to help maintain the humidity in your cages, as well as provide a source of water. Just go to Wal-Mart or Target and in the hair care section there should be plenty of them. A dollar will get you something which look like this:
My second essential piece of gear for any scorpion fan is rubber tipped tweezers. They come in many sizes, but I recommend the 12” ones. These might set you back about ten dollars or so, but they will come in EXTREMELY handy further down the road, and prevent most stings from happening. This especially important if you are keeping potentially medically significant species. Here is a link to a reputable supplier of said tongs:
http://www.beanfarm.com/store/agora...8L5&product=Handling Equipment&user4=Tweezers
Last but not least, you’re going to need a black light. If you plan on doing any field collection a decent UV flashlight can be found on EBay for under $20. For just having around the house you can by an inexpensive backlight that will fit in to normal light fixtures for around $3 each. These will come in handy when you're having trouble locating a scorpion or two in its cage, and it’s also neat to occasionally show of the fluorescent qualities of scorpions to your friends.
The Importance of Labeling. As your scorpion collection grows it becomes very important to label everything you own. My preferred method is abbreviations on labels, attached to the bottom f of each container. A 500 pack of such labels can be found at office supply stores for around $3.50. Labeling is VITAL as your collection grows. Many species within the same genus can be hard to ID at various stages of their lives and it is best to not have to resort to guessing. These labels are small, and rather than removing them when you re-house things, simply put another label over the top of the old one. Believe me keeping 100% of your collection labeled at all time will come in VERY handy down the road.
Here are my labels of choice:
These are all just rough drafts of what I plan on adding to my website (once I've remasted style sheets and html). The website will have in depth care information for the 50+ species I keep.
thanks - ryan
General Care Info: Affordable and Effective Housing
Some people prefer aquariums or Kritter Keeper type things to house their scorpions in. If you are on a budget, or need to house a large number of scorpions, the methods presented here will be very beneficial to you. Some people complain that Sterilites are not clear enough to see through. However, if properly done you should be able to take the lid off at any time and take a closer look at your specimen, without the risk of escape.
Step 1) Locate your plastic box. Rubbermaid containers are fine, but the walls are a little too thick, and can be harder to drill/melt holes into. I prefer to use Sterilite containers; they are extremely cheap, and available at almost all major retailers. What size you choose is entirely dependent on what you plan on housing. This is the size I use to house either large single adult specimens, or colonies of smaller species.
Step 2) Create ample airflow by drilling or burning holes into your container. My preferred method involves a pair of needle nose pliers, a nail, and a lighter. In my opinion drilling is too time consuming and creates quite a mess. Using this hot nail method you grab the nail firmly between the tips of the pliers. Hold the nail over an open flame (lighter or a candle) for 30 seconds or so. Then take the hot nail and carefully poke ample air holes on all sides of the container. The holes should look something like this:
I usually put more holes than what is pictured. There are more around it on all sides.
Step 3) Interior design. Now, much of this is up to you. I prefer to use either natural cork bark, or cork board (which can be located at most hobby stores such as Michael’s or A.C. Moore). If it’s a bark scorpion, you obviously want to provide more vertical climbing space. If you’re housing more than one specimen in the container, it’s a good idea to provide extra hides. Choice of substrate is up to you, and I will cover this more in depth in other care articles. Pictured here is my breeding colony of adult H. judaicus. Note the number of hides, substrate mixture of peat moss and sand, and the access to water.
Step 4) Heating and Racking. One of the most convenient things about using these Sterilite containers is that they are very easy to stack. If you have a temperature controlled area, then just stick them in there. If not, a closet shelf makes a convenient storage area. Place the containers on the shelves and point some infrared heat lights at them. Be sure you mist frequently for the tropical species. A digital thermometer comes in handy at this point, as do light fixtures with adjustable power levels.
Conclusions Sterilite and Rubbermaid containers come in a huge variety of shapes an sizes. In my opinion they are the perfect housing for any type of scorpion. They are nearly escape proof, just be sure the lid is securely snapped on, and that for the most part a scorpion doesn’t have ability to reach like lip of the cage. This is done by the strategic placement of hides and climbs. Details on how I house juveniles in a similar fashion will he found in a future article.
General Care Info: Choosing a Substrate
This section could get pretty complicated, so I will attempt to keep it as simple as possible. You have a few very reliable selections to choose from. The first is coco coir. This stuff comes in bricks (which then need to be hydrated) at your local pet store for around $5 a brick, but can be had for cheaper online from suppliers like LLLreptile, and the Bean Farm. This my substrate of choice and it used in some form or another in the majority of my cages. You can also acquire pure sphagnum moss at most home and garden centers, one bag will go a long way, just make sure it is pesticide free.
For topical (humidity loving) species, I typically use a well hydrated mixture off 100% pure coco coir. For semi-arid species I use a mixture of coco fiber and Reptisand (comes in many colors, available at any pet store).
I vary the sand/coco ratio depending on just how dry I want the cage to be. My general mixture is about 40% Reptisand to 60% coco coir. Desert species go on 100% Reptisand, which I chose mostly for the variety of colors, but playground sand from Lowes will work just as well. I will go in to further detail about substrate once I finish individual species care sheets.
General Care Info: Gear you’ve got to own!
Now that you’ve got housing out of the way, time to move on to some gear that I find indispensible. First off, a spray bottle is a must. You need a good spray bottle to help maintain the humidity in your cages, as well as provide a source of water. Just go to Wal-Mart or Target and in the hair care section there should be plenty of them. A dollar will get you something which look like this:
My second essential piece of gear for any scorpion fan is rubber tipped tweezers. They come in many sizes, but I recommend the 12” ones. These might set you back about ten dollars or so, but they will come in EXTREMELY handy further down the road, and prevent most stings from happening. This especially important if you are keeping potentially medically significant species. Here is a link to a reputable supplier of said tongs:
http://www.beanfarm.com/store/agora...8L5&product=Handling Equipment&user4=Tweezers
Last but not least, you’re going to need a black light. If you plan on doing any field collection a decent UV flashlight can be found on EBay for under $20. For just having around the house you can by an inexpensive backlight that will fit in to normal light fixtures for around $3 each. These will come in handy when you're having trouble locating a scorpion or two in its cage, and it’s also neat to occasionally show of the fluorescent qualities of scorpions to your friends.
The Importance of Labeling. As your scorpion collection grows it becomes very important to label everything you own. My preferred method is abbreviations on labels, attached to the bottom f of each container. A 500 pack of such labels can be found at office supply stores for around $3.50. Labeling is VITAL as your collection grows. Many species within the same genus can be hard to ID at various stages of their lives and it is best to not have to resort to guessing. These labels are small, and rather than removing them when you re-house things, simply put another label over the top of the old one. Believe me keeping 100% of your collection labeled at all time will come in VERY handy down the road.
Here are my labels of choice:
These are all just rough drafts of what I plan on adding to my website (once I've remasted style sheets and html). The website will have in depth care information for the 50+ species I keep.
thanks - ryan
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