My Asian Forest male scorpion killed the female after mateing

[John r]

Just got a male Asian forest scorpion brought it home yesterday and it instantly started mating with the female I woke up this morning to the male cannibalizing the female is this normal or did I do something wrong by putting them together I was told that I could keep them communal

 

[BoyFromLA]

Every communal set up, regardless of it’s possibility, there is always a risk of cannibalism.

It’s always best to keep them separate.

 

[Dry Desert]

Just got a male Asian forest scorpion brought it home yesterday and it instantly started mating with the female I woke up this morning to the male cannibalizing the female is this normal or did I do something wrong by putting them together I was told that I could keep them communal

No such thing as communal scorpions. When you put them together to mate, monitor closely, then separate immediately. Are you sure the male ate the female, not the other way around.?

 

[The Snark]

In the wild info. I don't think this is their mating season. A little late in the year - late March, April, May and early June. Except during the mating cycle and under certain conditions, anything without exception that can fit in those claws is potential food.

 

[Albireo Wulfbooper]

You can't just take a stressed-out wild-caught animal from a pet store where they've probably been incorrectly cared for and drop them in with another animal and expect everything to work out.

This new specimen needed time to calm down, time to get healthy, time to feel comfortable in its new environment, and time for you to understand its temperament.

Some Heterometrus can be kept together, assuming plenty of space and food, and specimens with calm temperaments. If you decide to try again at some point, take the time to ensure the both specimens are healthy, calm, and well-fed, and monitor them very closely when they are together. With calm, healthy, well-fed animals in a nice big enclosure, there's a chance you might eventually be able to co-house two Heterometrus, bu even then it will depend on the individual temperaments of the animals. Some are fightier than others to begin with, and females will often get aggressive when they're gravid, so it's never as simple as just dropping in two adults together and calling it a job well done.

 

[Beetles]

In the wild info. I don't think this is their mating season. A little late in the year - late March, April, May and early June. Except during the mating cycle and under certain conditions, anything without exception that can fit in those claws is potential food.

Scorpions when brought from the wild dont/dont have to breed on the natural cycle.

 

[MrTwister]

Scorpions when brought from the wild dont/dont have to breed on the natural cycle.

The instincts and environmental factors that trigger breeding still apply.

 

[The Snark]

Scorpions when brought from the wild dont/dont have to breed on the natural cycle.

The instincts and environmental factors that trigger breeding still apply.

I don't have the data here but this has been a subject of study at the space station. Certain traits remain in a completely alien environment. Personally I don't see any answers in the near future. Where exactly to bio-chemical instructions and ephemeral instincts meet? And how?

 

[Crom]

There are absolutely communal scorpions. But to varying degrees, and there is always chances of cannibalism. I would bet the male wasn't very well fed beforehand, which I've experienced before when leaving together. If fed well this typically won't happen.

I have kept Pandinopsis dictator and Gigantometrus swammerdami in communals with great success. This is typically done best with siblings and litter mates and mother, who will feed them for their first several instars. Ive experienced very little, pretty much unnoticeable cannibalism and feed plenty. Tityus stigmurus is another very communal species, H. franzwerneri as adults, lots of species are very communal as adults. A hungry scorpion not used to being around another is always a risk tho, and males should be seperated from females after mating anyway

 

[Dry Desert]

There are absolutely communal scorpions. But to varying degrees, and there is always chances of cannibalism. I would bet the male wasn't very well fed beforehand, which I've experienced before when leaving together. If fed well this typically won't happen.

I have kept Pandinopsis dictator and Gigantometrus swammerdami in communals with great success. This is typically done best with siblings and litter mates and mother, who will feed them for their first several instars. Ive experienced very little, pretty much unnoticeable cannibalism and feed plenty. Tityus stigmurus is another very communal species, H. franzwerneri as adults, lots of species are very communal as adults. A hungry scorpion not used to being around another is always a risk tho, and males should be seperated from females after mating anyway

@Dylan Keife keeping a group of siblings with their mother is not a communal scorpion arrangement. Nor is the statement " there are absolutely communal scorpions, to a varying degree " hardly backing up the argument of communal scorpion keeping.

 

[Crom]

What is your argument against it? That cannibalism can happen...? It can happen with any communal species nearly. Look at humans. Many people have had plenty success keeping various scorpions in different degrees of communal setting, including myself. I've had hundreds of forest scorpion/Pandinus types of various ages from various sources and species. I've kept various specimens form different broods together as well with little to no problem. You can find them in the wild with several generations sharing the same burrowing system. Frankly, I don't think occasional cannibalism is synonymous with a species not classifying as a "true" communal species. But feel free to disagree

 

[Dry Desert]

What is your argument against it? That cannibalism can happen...? It can happen with any communal species nearly. Look at humans. Many people have had plenty success keeping various scorpions in different degrees of communal setting, including myself. I've had hundreds of forest scorpion/Pandinus types of various ages from various sources and species. I've kept various specimens form different broods together as well with little to no problem. You can find them in the wild with several generations sharing the same burrowing system. Frankly, I don't think occasional cannibalism is synonymous with a species not classifying as a "true" communal species. But feel free to disagree

" Some species can be kept communaly, but only as adults " " Some can be kept communaly as siblings or juveniles only. Some males can be kept together until one gets piszed off with the other one. Females can be kept together until one becomes gravid then attacks all others. A group can be kept communally until certain members decide, for what ever reason, not to be. In what combination of these can scorpions be kept communally ?? Ther is no such thing as Long Term communual keeping - not even " to a lesser or greater degree. Attempts at any communal keeping are for the benefit/ amusement of the keeper, not for the continually stressed out animal. As you pointed out - look at humans.

 

[Crom]

You're also the fella that said all the imperator in our Petcos over the past several years are illegal imported or captive bred. So there's that.

So you don't have a your opinion definition of what a communal species is? And what are you basing it off? Things you've read...? If they aren't communal, are you claiming they are a solitary scorpion species...? Because let's be honest, the chances you have as much hands on experience with this topic as I do is fairly small. How much experience do you have keeping Heterometrus, Gigantometrus, Pandinus, Pandinopsis, etc in general?

Look how stressed out they are by eachothers presence.

 

[Edan bandoot]

You're also the fella that said all the imperator in our Petcos over the past several years are illegal imported or captive bred. So there's that.

So you don't have a your opinion definition of what a communal species is? And what are you basing it off? Things you've read...? If they aren't communal, are you claiming they are a solitary scorpion species...? Because let's be honest, the chances you have as much hands on experience with this topic as I do is fairly small. How much experience do you have keeping Heterometrus, Gigantometrus, Pandinus, Pandinopsis, etc in general?

Look how stressed out they are by eachothers presence.

What species are those, they're very good looking

 

[Joey Spijkers]

No such thing as communal scorpions. When you put them together to mate, monitor closely, then separate immediately. Are you sure the male ate the female, not the other way around.?

What is your opinion on Tityus stigmurus and many other Tityus species? It’s pretty well established in the hobby that they can be kept communally without the issues you mentioned. All stages, from adults, scorplings, gravid females etc. can peacefully live together and even grow more quickly in a communal setting.

So besides disagreement on which species are communal and which are not, I think a blanket statement that this is not the case for any species is simply proven to be untrue, because this is definitely a species where there is no reasonable argument against it.

 

[Joey Spijkers]

What species are those, they're very good looking

Gigantometrus swammerdami. Awesome species.

 

[Edan bandoot]

Gigantometrus swammerdami. Awesome species.

do they keep the orange colour through the whole molt cycle or are those just fresh

 

[Crom]

do they keep the orange colour through the whole molt cycle or are those just fresh

They gradually turn black once they mature, take a few months tho

 

[Crom]

The top specimen is a recently molted specimen. All molted to maturity at slightly different times while housed together. I've done this with dictator as well, 10 to 20 housed together if I remember right and molted together to maturity with zero cannibalism

 

[Dry Desert]

do they keep the orange colour through the whole molt cycle or are those just fresh

You disagree with my statements yet you don't even recognise the Scorpion species being mentioned - but they do loot pretty, God help us.