Owning a scorpion

Ron_323

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 15, 2007
Messages
4
Hi guys, I been thinking of owning a pet scorpion, I have owned pets before but I want to try something diffrent, tomorrow I have been looking on info on pet scorpions and such and I stumbled upon this place, it seems you guys are experts so I decided to ask you guys, whats a good recomended scorpion for the novice? I heard emperors are pretty easy to care, what do they need? What tempature and humidity do they need? Food, tank size and such?
 

Rosenkreuz

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 18, 2007
Messages
252
Emperors are great starter scorpions. They're easy to take care of, and can be handled without much worry.

For requirements, a tank of about 5 gallons works well for a single, and obviously the more you have the larger the setup, although I've been told a 10 gallon will house a couple of adults decently. You'll need a substrate consisting of either peat, coco-fiber, or something similar. It'll need to be nice and deep too, as Emperors are a burrowing species. Add a water dish, and something to hide under (if there's more than one scorpion, you'll need a hide for each scorpion, plus an extra one so they'll always have someplace to go), and you're all set. Feed them crickets their size or smaller, and they'll be happy. The only other requirements are temps in the mid 80's, and an RH% of about 80-90%.
 

Australis

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Apr 9, 2006
Messages
492
Heating is not so impportant...well to me tat is...i'm stayin where its warm all year round.
U don't need a heat rock...or a heat mat, u may end up frying the little guy :D

Humidity is very very important. If it gets too wet, it'll drown and if it gets to dry, it will shrivel like a prune :D

Sounds complicated yeah...it is lol...
if its just an emp its much easier...they are quite tolerant
 

JungleGuts

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
May 7, 2006
Messages
1,123
emps are good but theirs actually some desert species that are alot easier to take care of.
 

Rosenkreuz

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 18, 2007
Messages
252
Okay thanks but is the heating and humidity really nesecarry for it?
If you're taking care of an Emperor, yes, it is. They're a tropical species, and live in the rainforest. For them to survive, they need to be in a setup that reproduces that.

If you live in a place that's consistantly warm, you don't need to worry about artificially heating the tank. If you live in a place with naturally high humidity, you don't need to worry about that either. But if not, you'll need to provide those for the scorpion.

Heatwise, I find a 50-75W infrared bulb in a clip lamp works great. Regular misting of room temp water keeps humidity.

They're really an easy species to keep, and great when kept communally. And, as was mentioned previously, there are a number of other species that are good beginner ones, particularly a few desert species.
 

Ron_323

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 15, 2007
Messages
4
Okay thanks guys, I already have the scorpion, just got it yesterday, so far the little guy is just resting, as for heat my house gets very warm and I make sure to check on the humidity, in time the tank will look better as I save money and buy more stuff, thanks guys!
 

FortCooper1982

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Apr 23, 2005
Messages
276
H spadix very cool scorpion, no water ever needed, stings alot (which is cool to see) takes on big pray, always digging, fun to watch
 

~Abyss~

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Mar 28, 2006
Messages
2,980
very active yes, but not as much so as my jaksoni or Lq's.
 

Aztek

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
May 22, 2007
Messages
1,733
I'm getting Jacksonis when either my emps or vitattus perish.
 

~Abyss~

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Mar 28, 2006
Messages
2,980
i used to say that. Now i managed to make room for over 9 spiders, 25+ scorpions(to lazy to actually count), a bearded dragon, 2 dogs, a ball python, and three different species of roaches.
 

xVOWx

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 21, 2005
Messages
235
I don't think the letters "L" and "Q" should even be used in this thread.. at all ;)
 

Skyswiftwing

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 24, 2007
Messages
30
Centruroides vittatus? How come there are no pictures of this one in the gallery? Do they go by another name? Or are they there and Im just blind?
 

Skyswiftwing

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 24, 2007
Messages
30
nice =D thanks. Im trying to decide what kind of scorpion to start on so ive been trying to look at the different kinds. Everything seems to be pointing at Emperor Scorpions to start?
 

MasamuneX7

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Oct 16, 2005
Messages
70
Emperors are great, so are are Asian Forest Scorpions (Heterometrus sp.) if you're looking for something slightly more aggressive yet still tame with mild venom.
 
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