Tailless whip scorpion ID and other questions

[strangerswithmemories]

Hi everyone! I’m fairly new to this forum and new to keeping any animals.

I got this TWS from a breeder here in Finland two days ago but they did not know the specific species. They had only labeled it ”Damon sp. Republic of south africa” so I was thinking if someone here knows the actual species. The TWS is still a half a year old (i guess he is like a juvenile??)so i’ve been feeding him wingless fruit flies and I’ve fed him 5-6 of them in the span of the 2 days ive had him. He has had no problem eating and is very active.

second thing is, the enclosure you are seeing here is 15x15x30(LxWxH measurements are in cm) The whole top ventilation is cling wrapped to keep humidity. So my questions are:

does this setup look good to you guys?

is there enough or too much humidity (I have condensation pretty much 24/7 and the tws is pretty much always hanging out in the mid/top part of the enclosure)?

my room is always 20-26 celsius, is this good for him or does he need extra heat?

this is the very first animal i have ever owned and i would greatly appreciate any help or feedback. Thank you

 

[that1ocelot]

Hi everyone! I’m fairly new to this forum and new to keeping any animals.

I got this TWS from a breeder here in Finland two days ago but they did not know the specific species. They had only labeled it ”Damon sp. Republic of south africa” so I was thinking if someone here knows the actual species. The TWS is still a half a year old (i guess he is like a juvenile??)so i’ve been feeding him wingless fruit flies and I’ve fed him 5-6 of them in the span of the 2 days ive had him. He has had no problem eating and is very active.

second thing is, the enclosure you are seeing here is 15x15x30(LxWxH measurements are in cm) The whole top ventilation is cling wrapped to keep humidity. So my questions are:

does this setup look good to you guys?

is there enough or too much humidity (I have condensation pretty much 24/7 and the tws is pretty much always hanging out in the mid/top part of the enclosure)?

my room is always 20-26 celsius, is this good for him or does he need extra heat?

this is the very first animal i have ever owned and i would greatly appreciate any help or feedback. Thank you

Everything is excellent!
You've clearly done your research.

Two things though:

Species? I have no idea. I've never seen an amblypygi similar in our pet trade. The pedipalps throw me off.

As well Fruit Flies Bad. I've seen quite a few reports of whips not getting the nutrition they need from fruit flies. This leads to molting issues and eventual death, just feed small crickets. Quarter Inch, Half Inch, My 7 month old whip took down a 3/4 inch last night. They're pretty great predators but will more willingly take smaller food. They're a bit more careful with the bigger stuff.

 

[strangerswithmemories]

Everything is excellent!
You've clearly done your research.

Two things though:

Species? I have no idea. I've never seen an amblypygi similar in our pet trade. The pedipalps throw me off.

As well Fruit Flies Bad. I've seen quite a few reports of whips not getting the nutrition they need from fruit flies. This leads to molting issues and eventual death, just feed small crickets. Quarter Inch, Half Inch, My 7 month old whip took down a 3/4 inch last night. They're pretty great predators but will more willingly take smaller food. They're a bit more careful with the bigger stuff.

Thank you for the fast reply! I will go and buy him some small crickets on wednesday! Do u suggest me try feeding him instantly or wait a couple days since he has eaten some fruit flies?

 

[that1ocelot]

Feed instantly I'd say! I made the same mistake when I was a new keeper. Definitely not the end of the world.

Cool little critter you've got there.

 

[strangerswithmemories]

Feed instantly I'd say! I made the same mistake when I was a new keeper. Definitely not the end of the world.

Cool little critter you've got there.

Very well thank you! I read online that fruit flies would be good for the younger TWS but thank you for clearing this up for me this early so I can go the right course!

 

[strangerswithmemories]

Feed instantly I'd say! I made the same mistake when I was a new keeper. Definitely not the end of the world.

Cool little critter you've got there.

Also one quick one, how pften should i feed him? I read that about 1-2 times a week but when should i start feeding him less or more?

 

[that1ocelot]

Also one quick one, how pften should i feed him? I read that about 1-2 times a week but when should i start feeding him less or more?

As often as they will eat, juveniles or sub adults eat more often. I'd say 2 - 3 times depending on abdomen size!

 

[strangerswithmemories]

As often as they will eat, juveniles or sub adults eat more often. I'd say 2 - 3 times depending on abdomen size!

Wow thank you so much. This might be a silly thing and i might be overly paranoid but can my TWS hold on till wednesday? Wednesday is the closest date for me to get the crickets.

 

[that1ocelot]

Wow thank you so much. This might be a silly thing and i might be overly paranoid but can my TWS hold on till wednesday? Wednesday is the closest date for me to get the crickets.

Oh my gosh yes. In good conditions they can live for a loong time without food as long as their environment is good.

I thought my sub adult was in pre-molt so I didn't offer food for about 60 days - wouldn't recommend but he was fine.

 

[strangerswithmemories]

Oh my gosh yes. In good conditions they can live for a loong time without food as long as their environment is good.

I thought my sub adult was in pre-molt so I didn't offer food for about 60 days - wouldn't recommend but he was fine.

60 days?? Holy cow thats a long time luckily I only have two days before wednesday. But thank you so much, i appreciate you a lot for answering my questions and concerns.

 

[strangerswithmemories]

Oh my gosh yes. In good conditions they can live for a loong time without food as long as their environment is good.

I thought my sub adult was in pre-molt so I didn't offer food for about 60 days - wouldn't recommend but he was fine.

Ok sorry im bothering you, but this one thing is one my mind. I sometimes see him hangin out with his palps open, is this normal? And when do i know she is in pre-molt or about to molt when just resting?

 

[that1ocelot]

Ok sorry im bothering you, but this one thing is one my mind. I sometimes see him hangin out with his palps open, is this normal? And when do i know she is in pre-molt or about to molt when just resting?

Haha no worries, I've asked all the same questions.

Just resting, it's a good thing!

 

[Albireo Wulfbooper]

Enclosure looks good. Species is not familiar to me, but certainly looks Damon-ish. You can feed prey up to about the size of the abdomen. With smaller prey you need to feed more frequently, but if you're feeding large prey they can easily go a couple of weeks between meals. Premoult is not obvious - they'll often refuse prey for a week or two before a moult, but not always, and sometimes they refuse prey because they're just not that hungry, so it's not a perfect sign. in the hours leading up to a moult they'll swell up, but it's a fairly short timeline, so you don't typically get a lot of notice.

Palps hanging open is a relaxed pose.

 

[strangerswithmemories]

Enclosure looks good. Species is not familiar to me, but certainly looks Damon-ish. You can feed prey up to about the size of the abdomen. With smaller prey you need to feed more frequently, but if you're feeding large prey they can easily go a couple of weeks between meals. Premoult is not obvious - they'll often refuse prey for a week or two before a moult, but not always, and sometimes they refuse prey because they're just not that hungry, so it's not a perfect sign. in the hours leading up to a moult they'll swell up, but it's a fairly short timeline, so you don't typically get a lot of notice.

Palps hanging open is a relaxed pose.

Thank you for the reply! I’m glad you guys are able to help me so much