#morbidsadvice

[morbidsmenagerie]

Scorpion Behavior

I'm writing this guide to help keepers get a baseline for what is normal behavior for their scorpion and what is unusual or concerning. Scorpions are not as commonly kept as tarantulas and have both claws and tails that can perform a wide variety of body language signaling, which can be hard for their keepers to read. Understanding what a scorpion's body language is saying, and being able to identify when a scorpion is stressed or not, is invaluable for providing the best care you can. Scorpions that are constantly stressed or uncomfortable are either being kept in adverse conditions or do not have a secure enough hide or burrow to retreat to, and continual stress over long periods of time will impact your scorpion's health.

I have also seen a lot of questions from new keepers that aren't sure how their scorpion is supposed to behave, and aren't sure which behaviors indicate an underlying problem. I'll also go over what to expect when keeping a scorpion and what their general behavior looks like, as well as some things that might be concerning for a new keeper to see.

Normal Behaviors

Scorpions are sedentary animals by nature. Even the more active ones that are more nomadic and will wander around between scrapes spend most of the day inactive. A scorpion that sits in a burrow or under a hide most of the time is a happy one. For some obligate burrowers, it's not uncommon for them to remain in their burrow for months at a time. In captivity, scorpions such as Scorpio sp, Hadrurus sp, and Heterometrus sp especially seem to be reluctant to leave their burrows. Scorpions that dig excessively or are usually out and redoing or moving their burrows probably do not have adequate substrate or space to burrow in. This usually happens with Hadrurus sp that are given loose sandy substrate, because their burrows will eventually collapse with excessive digging and they'll start over and try to dig another one. For Hadrurus being kept on loose substrate, I've found that giving them a very large hide that allows them to dig a large burrow underneath without it collapsing is the best way to get them to stop doing this.

Scorpions also frequently go off food. Especially for mature males, they will often refuse food for many months at a time. They seem to prefer to fast and gorge. If your temperatures are adequate, a scorpion refusing food is nothing to be concerned about. Scorpions will also go off food during premolt or close to giving birth. Looking at body condition will give you a good idea of whether or not you should be concerned.

This scorpion is extremely thin. The tergites (plates on the top) are touching the sternites (plates on the bottom) and the pleural membrane (greyish membrane connecting them) is not visible at all. This scorpion needs to drink and eat immediately, at this point I would give water by hand using a paint brush, q-tip, or blunt syringe. You can also cut mealworms or feeders into the water before giving it to them to help perk them up and take it more readily, and to give them more nutrients.

This scorpion is a bit on the thin side, the tergites are slightly overlapping and the pleural membrane is visible but visibly wrinkly. I would ensure this scorpion eats soon and provide a source of water.

This is where I typically like to keep my scorpions. The tergites are slightly spaced out, the pleural membrane is a bit rounded and looks soft and relaxed, and is generally not wrinkled. Some keepers would put this on the slightly overfed region, but I prefer to keep my scorpions well fed and let them slim down when they fast.

This scorpion is (hopefully) getting ready to molt. Not all of them will be quite this fat going into a molt, but generally the scorpion looks very bloated and the pleural membrane is stretched and taut. Typically they will stop eating at this point. Some scorpions will be this size even without being in premolt, this particular scorpion pictured has been around this size for almost a year and hasn't molted yet. Every 3 months or so I'll give her a small cricket just to keep her going, and so far she hasn't refused food or gotten any thinner.

This scorpion is gravid. Experience will make it easier to tell a fat scorpion from a gravid one, the shape of the body is slightly different. Close to giving birth though, it's often possible to see the shape of the embryos through the pleural membrane, which is a guaranteed way to determine if a scorpion is gravid. At this point the scorpion will have stopped eating, and will eventually seal themselves in a hide or burrow to give birth.

Relaxed Scorpion

A relaxed scorpion is one that is generally comfortable in it's environment. The pedipalps are held to the side, and the tail will be held slightly curled and either completely horizontal or slightly angled. The legs are not excessively curled under the body. Typically this is the pose they take under their hides, though they will sit like this out in the open if they've become accustomed to captivity. This is how they'll look most of the time, though when you move the enclosure or lift up a hide to check on them don't be surprised if their body language suddenly changes.

Alert Scorpion

This is the pose of a scorpion that has recently been disturbed or is looking for prey. It looks a bit different from a stressed scorpion (which we'll look at later). The metasoma is up though usually not arched excessively over the back, and the pedipalps are forward and investigating. The scorpion might walk around, especially if it senses prey and is trying to find it. Under a hide, though, the scorpion might just reach out and feel around with it's pedipalps. The movement will look controlled and investigative, if the scorpion walks it will be at a slow pace.

This is a video that demonstrates this well, in this video the scorpion has a relatively relaxed tail, her pedipalps are often outstretched and she feels around in her environment, her pectines move back and forth to sense the substrate, and she walks at a slow, almost hesitant pace.

In this video the scorpion is searching for a cricket I had put in the container and she detected, still her movements are relatively unhurried and her pectines are feeling around but her tail is much more upright and her movements are a bit more jerky. She is exploring but alert to the prey in the area.

Defensive Pose

This is the body language of a scorpion that believes it might be in danger. It's not quite at full on fight or flight yet, and I'm putting it in normal behaviors because it represents just a higher level of alertness and uncertainty. Some species, in particular Paravaejovis spinigerus and Orthochirus species, will almost ball up and curl their metasoma almost entirely over their backs. Claws are usually held more tightly to the sides and legs may be pulled in closer to the body.

In large clawed species, particularly Pandinus and Heterometrus, the metasoma is not usually brought all the way over the top of the backs but will be more upright and slightly raised. Claws are usually held in front of the face. In Gigantometrus species and some Heterometrus this is particularly pronounced, and the claws will be crossed in front of the body almost like a shield.

Stress Behaviors

Some scorpions freeze when they are stressed, which is hard to determine visually because they will freeze in whatever position they happen to be in when they are disturbed. A scorpion that has freezed is usually doing it to avoid detection, if you continue to bother the scorpion it will usually either threat pose or bolt. Some species are very good at freezing though, and will stay frozen in the position they're in even when being handled or flipped over. Experience will help you differentiate a scorpion that is frozen and stressed and a scorpion that is just being still.

Threat Pose

A scorpion that is threat posing is one that believes it is in danger. Some species will threat pose much more readily than others, this body language should tell you that if you continue to mess with the scorpion you should expect a sting or a pinch. The pedipalps will be open wide, the claws will be open, and the tail will be strongly arched into the air. In some species, like Gigantometrus swammerdami, they will threat post with their claws held tightly in front of them.

Bolting

Bolting looks markedly different than the exploratory walk shown earlier. A scorpion that bolts is moving very quickly, and often wont stop until it hits some sort of barrier or it finds a sheltered space to hide under. Scorpions can bolt very abruptly (usually from a freeze) and use it to escape a potential predator.

Glass Dancing

Glass dancing is similar to bolting in that it comes from a scorpion trying to escape a situation it doesn't like. This is extremely common with new animals or animals that are placed in new enclosures. Once they settle in and establish hides and burrow that are safe, this behavior will stop. A scorpion that is glass dancing for a long period of time or one that does this even when a hide or burrow is available is either trying to escape an adverse environmental condition (too hot, wet, cold, ect) or does not want to use the hide or burrow provided. I would investigate your enclosure parameters and/or move around and provide different options for hides. Substrate type and moisture might also be a problem.

Sick/Dying/Dead

A scorpion that is sick or dying will have an extremely flat, limp tail. Sometimes the tail will be so flat it will even look recurved, as in bent in the opposite direction it normally sits. They will look extremely weak and may move around in a way that looks sluggish and uncoordinated. Oftentimes, though not always, the legs will be tightly pulled under the body similarly to a spider's "death curl".

Other Behaviors

Stilting

Stilting is when a scorpion either lifts itself straight up from the substrate or lifts itself up at an angle with it's head pointed downwards. I've seen a few different explanations for this behavior. I've seen people say scorpions will do this to prepare for giving birth, but males and juveniles will do this also. I've also heard it serves a temperature regulation function, either to escape a hot surface underneath them or to get closer to a heat source above them. This can look similar to but is slightly different from the chelicerae cleaning behavior and the drinking behavior.

Chelicerae cleaning/Drinking

Grouping these because the pose is similar, in both cases the scorpion will be facing down to the substrate while the back half of i's body is elevated. Obviously when done over a water dish it's obvious the scorpion is drinking, but they will also do this over moist substrate to seemingly drink condensation out of the dirt. Chelicerae cleaning is similar and usually is done during eating or drinking when particulates get stuck to the chelicerae, scorpions will rub or drag their chelicerae through the substrate to get the substance off.

Dragging pedipalps through substrate

Don't have a video of this, but sometimes upon catching a prey item the scorpion will immediately start pushing their pedipalps around in the substrate, often partially burying their prey without letting go. I've also see them do this when their pedipalps get substrate stuck to them. This is also a way to clean residue off their pedipalps.

Tail wagging/waving

A very interesting behavior, this seems more common with species that are relatively tolerant with each other. This appears to be a way to communicate with other scorpions, basically a way to let them know that they themselves are not food, though I have also seen it with scorpions that are introduced to a new environment or are unsure about their surroundings.

Tail Clubbing

A defensive behavior where the scorpion bumps or clubs at a potential threat with their tail, usually with the telson tucked under the fifth segment. This is not an attempt to sting, and seems to be used often on other scorpions as a way to warn them without escalating to a sting and wasting venom.

Juddering

Usually done by the male, associated with mating. Male's will do this when they detect pheromones from the female, or will do this at the female to initiate mating. Males will also do this at each other to initiate arm span competitions.

Swaying

I'm going to be honest I don't know why she's doing this but you can also see another example of tail clubbing because she annoyed her tankmate.

Pooping

A scorpion that is walking forward with it's tail stretched out straight behind it is pooping. Included this here because flat tail usually means sick or dying and people are often concerned when they see this behavior. Watch the scorpion and it'll eventually curl it's tail back up again, prolonged time with it's tail flat on the substrate or other unusual behaviors such as sluggishness or appearing disoriented is a concern.

Conclusion

Hopefully this gives you a better idea of how your scorpion will act in captivity, and give you a better idea of behaviors that are normal or a cause for concern. Being able to tell scorpion body language and figure out when they're stressed is key for troubleshooting your care to make them as comfortable as possible. This should also help reassure you if your scorpion is acting weird and you don't know why. Hope this helps!

[morbidsmenagerie]

Keeping Medically Significant Animals

Important Information, Myths, and Best Practices

So I've been sitting on this post for a while, though I had been thinking about writing it up. What spurred me to do this now was the incident that occurred last Friday. A man was hospitalized for being bitten by his pet Inland Taipan, and from what I know right now is still in critical condition. This got special attention from the hobby because he was an ass, and frequently posted inflammatory rants and videos about free handling his snakes. The story is starting to circulate on news, and the police got involved, and his snakes were confiscated and euthanized.

This is the most recent news article I have about the situation. Whenever stuff like this happens it strongly affects people in the hobby, this damages the perception of both the animals we care for and the hobbyists themselves. South Carolina previously had little regulation on keeping venomous snakes, but because this one incident with this one guy who was blatantly irresponsible, it is likely new laws will be passed regulating the keeping of these animals.

In general, I do think some stricter regulations should be in place, but the problem with these incidences becoming so public is that the lawmakers who will write these laws likely have no knowledge or experience with the hobby, and will assume this is the norm. This is much more likely to pass whole bans, or to pass extremely broad restrictions. The UK currently has a very strict Dangerous Wild Animal law that bans whole families of animals, regardless if individual species in those families are actually dangerous or not.

So I'm going to be discussing a bit about the keeping of medically significant animals, what the hobby actually looks like, what risks are involved, and how we can mitigate and prepare for those risks to make keeping as safe as it can possibly be. I will primarily be focusing on arachnids, as that is where my experience lies.

What is a medically significant animal?

In order to properly regulate the hobby, we need to have some basis of definitions. Unfortunately, there is no clear consensus on what animals are or are not "medically significant". Medically significant is a hobby term, typically when this is discussed in scientific settings they refer to "medically important venomous animals". Usually, this term is reserved for animals that present some threat to human health and safety. Even this isn't clear cut though, for example I couldn't fine a clear cut answer on whether or not honeybees were considered medically important. They do sting people, and that sting could result in a life threatening situation if the person is allergic, but I'm not sure where the consensus is on if a secondary allergy reaction or bacterial infection from the initial sting makes the animal itself medically important. I'm also not sure what amount of risk is required for an animal to be considered medically important. There has been one reported death from a Javanimetrus cyaneus, presumably because someone had a novel severe reaction or some other health complication that reacted poorly with the venom, but in all other sting reports and investigations of this species that risk is extremely unlikely. They are not considered medically important.

The definition I like to use is a "medically significant" animal is an animal where a bite or sting has a reasonable risk of requiring medical attention from a hospital. Bees aren't medically significant, unless you are allergic to them in which case they would be medically significant to you. Javanimetrus cyaneus aren't medically significant because the risk of anything more than mild pain is exceedingly rare.

Venom is also usually placed on a scale in the hobby, to designate the level of risk. This is also up for a lot of debate, so this is the scale I use when talking about scorpions:

1 - Extremely low potency, pain clears up in less than an hour, no lasting effects.

2 - Low potency, pain may last longer than an hour but less than a day, may experience localized swelling or tingling, no lasting effects.

3 - Potent, pain may last longer than a day, systemic effects such as nausea, sweating, light-headedness may occur, a severe reaction may require a hospital visit but usually clears up with no lasting effects. The lowest level of medically significant.

4 - Very potent, systemic effects likely, may require a visit to the hospital, potentially life threatening if there is a severe reaction.

5 - Life threatening, has been known to kill adults, you should immediately go to the hospital.

This can be useful when discussing relative risk when keeping an animal, but all precautions and best practices should be used when dealing with any animal that is medically significant. Remember:

ANYONE can have a bad reaction to ANY VENOM, which could make a sting from ANY species turn into a LIFE THREATENING event!

Risk Mitigation

I often compare keeping medically significant animals to riding a motorcycle. Riding a motorcycle at all is inherently more dangerous than other forms of transport, no matter how safe you are, you are still taking that extra risk. Risk is unavoidable, there is some inherent risk in anything you do. The best thing to do when faced with this reality is to take steps to be as safe and informed as possible about the risks, and to have a plan for what to do if things go wrong.

For riding a motorcycle, this looks like wearing proper protective gear including a helmet, following posted traffic laws, taking a motorcycle riding course and getting a license, and having adequate health insurance to cover you in case of an accident. None of these things will ever completely eliminate the risk of an accident, but being informed and as safe as possible will still help protect you and others.

For medically significant animals, here are some ways to mitigate the risks:

Properly secured enclosure

This is an absolute must. A properly secure enclosure looks different depending on what animal you're talking about. For scorpions, they can't climb smooth surfaces, but are very diligent escape artists and can reach up rather far by balancing on their tails, and access much higher in the enclosure than you would initially think. They are also quite strong, and can open up lids that aren't properly secure. Having a locking mechanism or a double container (a larger container over the smaller one as an extra layer of protection) is also recommended. A secure enclosure can also apply to what's outside and around it. If you have pets, children, guests, or other considerations like that, a properly secure enclosure might also look like a locked room where the container is located, or a locked shelf that is well out of reach. Properly labeling the enclosure to ensure everyone in the house is aware of the potential dangers of the animal is also a good idea.

2. Safe interactions

After the animal has been properly secured, you now have to figure out how to do all the maintenance, feeding, and moving that goes into keeping a pet generally. The most dangerous time of interacting with a medically significant animal is during rehousing, the animal will be stressed from being moved and is likely to be agitated and bolty. If the scorpion has to be moved for rehousing or a related situation (such as placing them together for breeding), proper considerations should be made. I always use double containment, which is basically a larger tub or container that is escape proof that the container the animal is in, and the container it's being moved into both fit inside. One of my closest calls was with my Androctonus bicolor. I was moving him to a larger enclosure, so I had him tailed with a pair of forceps and was lifting him up. He was much stronger than I anticipated, and was able to hook his tail in the forceps and flick himself out of my grip. he landed on the edge of his old container and crawled out, but luckily I had a double container around his old container so instead of ending up on my floor, he ended up safely contained in a larger container. From there I was able to move him to his new container.

Safe interactions also involve awareness of where the scorpion is, and where your hands are at all times. I never let my hands break the plane of the enclosure, they always stay outside. For anything that requires me reaching into the enclosure, I always use forceps. Getting into this habit is imperative, for one if something goes wrong you already have forceps ready and are less likely to instinctively reach out with your hand, for two if you don't know where the scorpion is and you reach for something with your hands, you are much more likely to accidentally squish or spook it and receive a sting.

This should go without saying, but unfortunately there are still too many examples of this and it is the number one reason why people get bit and stung by their pets.

NEVER handle ANY medically significant animal with your bare hands!

There is no reason for it. None of the animals we've discussed for medical significance, including all snakes and arachnids, get any benefit from being handled. There is no benefit to the animal at all. Arachnids are naturally solitary, and being handled is at best just going to annoy them and at worse stress them out. No risk, no matter how small you think it is, is worth bothering your animals for.

I am also including people who intentionally free handle to "prove" how docile the animal is. I don't think this is the proper way to go about education about potentially dangerous species, and I don't think it accomplishes the intended goal. You can explain, for example, that spiders are very reluctant to bite, are skittish, and are not out to attack you. There are many ways to demonstrate a spiders docility, one of my favorite ways is using the "cheese test" from Travis McEnery's "The Spiders in your House" series on Youtube. This can be beneficial to ease people's fear about these animals, without putting yourself in undo danger. I've also demonstrated Brown Recluse reactions to a threat using a paintbrush, or use forceps to demonstrate scorpion defensive behavior.

What isn't safe is holding an animal with your bare hands, intentionally provoking it by pressing it to yourself or harassing it with your finger, or putting it on your face or in your mouth to "prove" that it's safe. For one, it's not safe, it's a medically significant animal and should be treated as such. I also don't think this is modeling safe behaviors with how to interact with these animals, especially when doing education for younger children. Just because an animal is unlikely to bite you, doesn't mean it can't or won't. It just takes them believing they are under threat, which depending on the animal or situation could change. An animal that is generally docile but for whatever reason that day is more on edge, or you pinched it accidentally, or you moved too fast and it got spooked, is liable to bite you. And when bites like this happen, the first thing everyone says is "what did you expect", which only confirms the public perception that these animals are inherently dangerous to be around.

3. Plan for the worst

Even with proper precautions, shit can happen and stuff occasionally goes wrong. It's always better to plan for the possibility there will be an accident than to think it wont happen and be taken by surprise. Have a plan for what you will do in the event of a bite or sting. This can look like having anti-venom on hand, informing your doctor ahead of time of medically significant animals you have in your house so they can give you recommendations, and having a first aid kit and an EpiPen in case of an allergic reaction. Anti-venom can be hard to find, or not available for personal use, and if your local hospital won't carry it for you that's another important thing to factor in when considering the risk of owning these animals.

NEVER think it won't happen to you, complacency leads to ACCIDENTS!

You should also have a plan in case of an escape, keeping your animals in a specific room will help with this, because you can preemptively block small cracks or exits to prevent them from getting into the rest of your house. Have a way to search for and recover the animal if possible, and know what to do in case the animal cannot be recovered. Depending on the animal and how severe the venom is, it may be necessary to call animal control to recover the animal if you cannot find it and it poses a significant danger to yourself or your neighbors.

You should also plan for other disasters. If you live in a place with earthquakes, are your enclosures secure enough to not be knocked off the shelves? If it's a severe earthquake, what will you do if they get knocked over anyway? In the event of a fire, how will you ensure the animal stays contained, and will it be necessary to inform the fire department of it's location? What about with flooding? Obviously it is difficult to imagine dealing with that added stress in the event of a severe disaster, but it is still important to think about.

These three things should be at the forefront of every keepers mind if they are considering keeping medically significant animals. These are general points of consideration, and what the specifics look like heavily depend on what animals you are keeping, but your goal should always be to make keeping as safe as possible for you, your neighbors, and the animal itself.

The Golden Rule

Always show these animals respect. Whenever you're thinking about their care, housing, making a disaster plan, or interacting with them, remember that these animals can potentially kill you. People who don't take the risks seriously or rely too much on their experience get complacent, and that leads to poor husbandry practices and mistakes.

Myths and Misconceptions

"I've been keeping this species for years, I can read it's behavior."

While experience will give you a much better understanding of the animal and will help you anticipate how it will react to different things, that's not a good substitute for proper handling techniques. Every individual is different, and every individual can have days where they're more or less reactive to stimuli. For example, scorpions that are gravid and close to giving birth are considerably more reactive and aggressive than they would be normally. A lot of communal tanks end because one of the scorpions ended up gravid and suddenly killed her tank mates. Animals can also be more easily stressed right before a molt, or if they already are in an agitated state from excess stimuli. Sometimes the animal makes a mistake, if you are hand feeding them they could miss the intended prey item and hit you instead. Experience also doesn't mean you can't make a mistake, and accidentally pinch or scare the animal. This kind of thinking is born of hubris, and it not properly taking into account the actual risks involved.

"This is a docile species."

Similar to the above, just because a species is generally docile doesn't mean they can't or won't bite. Every animal has it's own range of tolerances, or they could be more stressed from other stimuli, or they could mistakenly get you because they missed the intended prey item, or you could pinch them and they believe they are under threat. I don't think every animal needs to be treated like it could go wild at any second and just suddenly attack you, but you should still have a realistic understanding of the risks and realize that even docile species can bite or sting.

"No one should keep these anyway."

A lot of people think the only reason anyone would keep a medically significant animal is because of some masculine driven death wish. We do things that are risky all the time, you're way more likely to get sent to the hospital from a car accident or your neighbor's dog than you are for any of the pets you keep if you practice proper risk mitigation. Venom is not the only draw of these animals, and the goal of keeping them isn't just to prove how much of a badass you are. The hobby tries really hard to self regulate and provide proper education and understanding for animals that have really bad reputations, I personally do a lot of education and outreach on recluse spiders, which are medically significant. Please believe that the people who are showing off their dangerous animals just to get internet attention are a very small minority of us who keep significant animals, and that there are ways to keep them at a reasonable level of safety, and that everyone can make their own decisions on what risks they are or are not willing to accept. I personally will not keep any Ctenidae, because the combination of being medically significant and the ability to climb plastic is not a level of risk I'm willing to accept.

"Doesn't showing a bite provide useful information?"

Potentially it can, but I have a strong dislike of the Youtubers who are taking bites and stings for views. We have bite/sting reports for medically significant species, and you can use multiple testimonies to give a more realistic impression of how the venom would affect you. Everyone reacts differently to pain and venom, so any one bite or demonstration is not that helpful in determining how dangerous an animal actually is. I also think they tend to either over or underexaggerate their reactions, one of the Youtubers I particularly have an issue with is Jack's World of Wildlife. He has taken Loxosceles reclusa bites and continually downplays their significance. He has said he "doesn't consider them to be medically significant at all" even though the video shows he experienced systemic effects. Loxosceles reclusa is also a good example of why these videos don't work for general education, Loxosceles venom is particularly active against fat cells, so bites on the thighs are more severe than bites on the extremities. Jack is a fit, skinny guy taking a bite on his forearm, an area without a lot of fat cells. He is demonstrating what is essentially the best case scenario for a bite (and still experienced systemic effects), how your body will react to a bite will be different. A more reasonable discussion taking into account the range of reported case studies would be more useful for education. I also think these kinds of videos encourage people to try it for themselves to see if it's "really that bad".

Conclusion

Medically significant animals are a very interesting group of animals, but careful special consideration needs to be taken when talking about their husbandry and care. Accidents can always happen, and people who are intentionally disregarding the risks and modeling bad behaviors bring down the hobby as a whole. Law makers are unlikely to have a balanced take on the hobby, and if they believe keeping these animals in inherently a danger to the public they could easy pass strict laws that kill the hobby as a whole. These animals are fascinating, but they deserve your respect and awareness because they can potentially cause you serious harm.

[morbidsmenagerie]

How do I manage feeding so many baby scorpions? Well here's my process!

It depends on the individual enclosures, the spinigerus and the apacheanus both have a small piece of spaghnum moss in their enclosures. This allows me to drip water on the moss directly to give the scorpions a bit better access to it, without making the substrate super wet. And they can hide under it for a high humidity zone. For the sculpturatus, that don't have spaghnum moss because they're arboreal and wouldn't go down to it very often, I use the hair mister to provide a light mist. I also do this occasionally with the other two species.

I use crushed mealworms to feed them, you can also use springtails, pinhead crickets, cricket drumsticks, roach nymphs, or fruit flies. Baby scorpions will often feed off of mom's food scraps, and they readily take prekilled. Crushed mealworms is the most efficient way to feed this many, smaller feeders can be a bit hard to wrangle and having to catch this many would be very time consuming, and fruit flies are difficult to use as feeders in their own right because they can easily climb out of reach because scorpions can't climb smooth surfaces.

All in all, just watering them takes about an hour, feeding and watering them took about 2 and a half hours.

[morbidsmenagerie]

Best Beginner Scorpions

I get asked a lot about good starter scorpions and best beginner scorpions. I've also seen quite a few people get into scorpions and start with either a Heterometrus silenus or a Pandinus imperator, and quickly decide scorpions just aren't for them. Also, some of you might already know I'm a huge fan of US native scorpions, and most of my experience and interest is in those. I think there are a ton of US native scorpions that are overlooked, when not only would they make excellent beginner pets, but they would probably be more what people are looking for in a scorpion than getting a Heterometrus or Pandinus.

So I'm finally going to talk about my recommendations for good beginner scorpions, and rate them based on Personality, Care, and Availability. This is not going to be a caresheet, I'll mostly just be talking about their care in broad strokes or talking about specific unique aspects of their care. Please do your research before getting a scorpion! Also not giving these scorpions a venom rating, all of the scorpions listed have mild venom and are not considered medically significant, but please keep in mind that anyone can have an allergic reaction to venom or have a particularly bad reaction to even a mild species.

These are just my personal takes based on my experience and what I've seen about their care, if I don't have personal experience with one of the scorpions listed I'll say that and base my rating of what I know of similar species or have seen from other people. The personality rating especially is based more on personal preference as well as size. This list also isn't all inclusive, there's definitely some out there that are great beginner scorpions but I don't know enough about to really give my opinions on them. This thread also wont have pictures because there's going to be a lot, but if you search through my blog I should have pictures of most of the species I'll talk about. Hopefully this introduces you to some scorpions you may not have considered as beginner pets, and gives some pointers on what to look for when picking a beginner scorpion.

Anuroctonidae

Anuroctonus pococki

Personality - 5/5 Care - 4/5 Availability - 2/5

Anuroctonus pococki is a medium sized (about 2") scorpion native to Southern California. There's two color morphs, a darker morph that is more common and a lighter morph, sometimes recognized as the distinct subspecies Anuroctonus pococki bajae (though to my knowledge the subspecies status is still up for debate). Both morphs are very bold looking, but the main selling point of this genus is their larger than life personalities. Although I've never seen one attempt to actually sting, they readily threat pose and will challenge anything that gets in their space, including prey items, forceps, and cameras. They readily burrow in the wild, so deeper substrate should be provided, which means the enclosure needs to be a bit taller than expected. They also aren't as readily available, if you live in Southern California they're common enough that you should find one fairly easily, but outside of this area only sellers that have US native scorpions are likely to have them.

Anuroctonus phaiodactylus

Personality - 5/5 Care - 4/5 Availability - 2/5

Very similar to Anuroctonus pococki, this species is slightly smaller and more widespread, found in California, Nevada, and Utah. They have the same bold personality, and because of their smaller size wouldn't need as big of an enclosure. They are lighter than A pococki and less granulated, which gives them a very shiny appearance.

Buthidae

Centruroides vittatus

Personality - 4/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 3/5

I'm hesitant to say any scorpion is truly communal, but bark scorpions seem to be more tolerant of each other than a lot of other scorpions. I wouldn't keep juveniles with adults because a molting scorpion can easily be preyed upon, but so far my communal set up with all adult females is going well. Centruroides vittatus are common in Texas, although they can be found in several neighboring states as well. They're arboreal, and need vertical places to climb and molt. They're also a bit on the smaller side, topping out at 2" though adult males have tails that might exceed this. Their small size detracts them a point, but they're very active and can readily be seen exploring their enclosure and have great prey drives. If you live in Texas these are very easy to find locally, outside of their native range though they're less commonly sold.

Centruroides gracilis

Personality - 4/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 3/5

As with Centruroides vittatus, the adults seem to do alright communally, and some people have had success keeping juveniles and adults together. They're larger than most other bark scorpions in the US, reaching about 3" in length with adult male's tails possibly reaching beyond this. One of the most interesting things about them is the wide variation of color, with some appearing solid black and some appearing almost uniformly red. There's also individuals that have black bodies and red legs, or other combinations of color. They're found in Florida and seem to be reasonably common there, being from a tropical area more care needs to be taken in keeping the enclosure humid and warm.

Chactidae

Uroctonus mordax

Personality - 1/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 3/5

Although common throughout the West Coast, Uroctonus mordax can be harder to find locally because of their small size, impressive camouflage, and timid personality. A very interesting scorpion from an unusual family, adults top out at about 1.5". Care doesn't get much easier, they're very forgiving and tolerant of colder conditions (to an extent!) and are happy with slightly damp soil and a hide. I wish I liked them more being the only scorpion found around where I live, but their mild personality definitely puts them in the "pet rock" category.

Diplocentridae

Diplocentrus spitzeri

Personality - 3/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 2/5

I have 2i babies from this species, and I help take care of what is presumably an adult at the PDXinsectarium, but I don't know for sure if the one at the insectarium is full grown. If it is, these scorpions are on the smaller size, as the one we have there is no longer than 1.25", but from different sources online they appear to get up to 2" as adults. I can't personally verify this though. I will say Diplocentrus are one of my favorite genus, due to their unique subaculear telson and their extremely shiny cuticle. That being said, Diplocentrus spitzeri are not my favorite species from this genus, the downsized of their small size bring them down just a bit. These guys are more common than other Diplocentrus though, and are still an excellent choice if you want to keep this unique genus.

Diplocentrus peloncillensis

Personality - 3/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 1/5

Absolutely gorgeous species, their highly shiny caramel coloration makes this one of the prettiest scorpions around. Adults are about 2", but unfortunately not very common either in their native habitat or in the hobby. I would definitely keep a look out for if these species ever does become available though.

Diplocentrus whitei

Personality - 3/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 1/5

I have only ever kept juveniles for this species, I have never seen an adult in person, but that doesn't stop this from being one of my favorite US native species ever. Relatively large, with sources saying they can reach up to 3", looking at these photos will surely enamor them to you. Shiny black, with bulky chela and a lean build makes them look like the scorpion equivalent of a sports car to me. Again unfortunately not very common in the hobby anymore, but definitely one I will be keeping an eye out for.

Hadruridae

Hadrurus arizonensis

Personality - 2/5 Care - 3/5 Availability - 5/5

Although highly recommended as a beginner species by most people, Hadrurus are the only genus of scorpions I refuse to keep myself. They are large, impressive looking scorpions, and their care definitely can be easy, but I think this genus suffers from multiple drawbacks that keep me from recommending this as a first choice. For one, Hadrurus are large, reaching up to 5" long. They're also obligate burrowers, and can dig burrows up to 3 feet deep in the wild. This means they need a lot more space than a lot of other scorpions would need, I honestly think a 10 gal is too small and ideally I would go with something even taller than that. They do best on clay-based substrate to maintain their burrows, which clay can be an issue if it ever gets wet. Wet clay will stick to a scorpions tarsi and claws, and can dry into a hard cement like block around their feet, which is a sure way for a scorpion to get mycosis. This isn't necessarily an issue if you never introduce water into the enclosure, but for beginner scorpion keepers it can be stressful if your scorpion goes on fast for several months and you also can't provide them water at all. They are hardy, and can survive several months without food or water, but it can be hard to not stress out about your scorpion when you haven't seen it or noticed it eating for that time. Also being obligate burrowers, this is a very likely possibility, they can spend 95-97% of their lives in their burrows. The other issue I have with them personally is that they don't seem to be readily bred in captivity. Wild caught scorpions are common, in fact most scorpions you will buy are likely to be wild caught, but most other scorpions at least can be bred in captivity so ideally more people will be invested in breeding them and establish a hobby population that will reduce the need to collect wild caught. Hadrurus species have difficulty breeding in captivity, both getting them to mate in captivity seems difficult to induce and even when females to give birth in captivity younger instars are unlikely to survive. Feasibly this is a problem that could be solved with dedicated time and effort, but for now I wouldn't recommend this species.

Edit: I'm actively working on improving the care for this species, I've been compiling reports from people who have gotten them to successfully molt in captivity as well as reports on their behavior and habitat in the wild. Some of this information is out of date because it was based on the old way of keeping, but I don't feel I have substantial enough evidence currently to confidently propose an alternative yet.

Hadrurus spadix

Personality - 2/5 Care - 3/5 Availability - 3/5

Hadrurus spadix has similar points and issues as discussed with Hadrurus arizonensis. They're very similar except Hadrurus spadix has an all black body and is found further up North, as far North as Idaho.

Hormuridae

Hadogenes troglyodytes

Personality - 1/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 1/5

This scorpion species is pretty special to me, it's the first scorpion species I ever owned, and got me into keeping scorpions as a whole. It's also one of the main two precautionary tales on the importance of captive breeding. Care for them is extremely easy, they aren't big burrowers and instead prefer tight crevices between rocks or in cracks, which makes them extremely fun to set up an enclosure for. Hot gluing rocks into a terrarium in a loose pile and filling in substrate into the gaps makes a fun display tank for them. They're also very forgiving, with only moderate temperature and humidity requirements. They are also appreciably large, though I think calling them the "biggest scorpion in the world" is misleading as most of their length comes in the extremely long tails of the males, their actual body size is around 3-4", and they are considerably less bulky than other large scorpions. The main drawback they had in the hobby was incredibly slow growth rates, with it taking 8-10 years for one to fully mature. Gestation periods were also long, reportedly up to 18 months between mating and birth. This terrible combination meant it was way easier and more profitable to collect from the wild, and though exports aren't illegal as they are with other scorpions on this list, availability has tanked in the last 4-5 years. When I first got into the hobby in 2018 I bought my Hadogenes troglyodytes for 25$, and she was about a 4i juvenile. Now, the only person I've seen sell them only has a small number of 2i captive bred babies, which he's selling for 200$. They're also reportedly rather boring, people complain about them being pet rocks or inactive, though honestly from my personal experience the scorpion I had was rather active and explored around her enclosure a lot, she also exhibited a lot of interesting behaviors like tail wagging which helped get me interested in other scorpions. This might be either due to a difference in care or a difference in individual.

Liocheles australasiae

Personality - 1/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 3/5

The poor man's Hadogenes troglyodytes. These guys benefit from being parthenogenetic, faster growing, and much more readily available, at the massive downside of being much, much smaller. Adults top out at about an inch. I've also found them much less active than my Hadogenes troglyodytes was, though again from what other people say this is closer to how H trogs normally behave. They do play dead when disturbed, which can be kind of alarming as you'll pick up the bark they're hiding under and they'll fall flat onto their backs and stay frozen there for a couple seconds. Other than that they're fairly inactive, but you will get to see them molt and grow a lot more.

Scorpionidae

Heterometrus silenus

Personality - 3/5 Care - 4/5 Availability - 5/5

Ah Asian Forest Scorpion, the reliable fallback. Most people first getting into scorpions start here. They are easy to care for, decently big, and readily available. And with the amount of misidentified "Heterometrus sp" or "Asian Forest Scorpion sp" in the hobby, even if you didn't want to start here you probably ended up starting here. As far as I know, most of these are imported from Thailand, even with a widely available species that breeds readily in captivity, most are still wild caught. This could mean an unexpected brood if you buy an adult female, and you may not know your scorpion is an adult because these guys are often sold as Heterometrus spinifer which get a lot larger. If your Heterometrus silenus is over 3" (from mouth to tailtip) I would assume it's an adult. These guys are also obligate burrowers and so need deeper substrate (and subsequently larger enclosures) but moist soil maintains a burrow much more readily and it's way easier to ensure they're hydrated as they appreciate having a water source constantly available. I have heard people caution that Heterometrus species are much more aggressive and feisty than Pandinus species, and should not be kept by beginners, but honestly I haven't found this to be the case. Both genus are rather mildly behaved in my opinion, though having dealt with several Heterometrus silenus and Pandinus imperator there are individuals from both species that can just be more high strung. Neither species is quick to sting, though pinches can hurt. The main benefit of Heterometrus silenus as a beginner species is how easy they are to find, a lot of major pet stores will have them for sale, though keep in mind that most subadults/adults for sale anywhere are more than likely wild caught.

Heterometrus spinifer

Personality - 4/5 Care - 4/5 Availability - 1/5

Much harder to find than Heterometrus silenus, much larger, and commonly mislabeled, Heterometrus spinifer are the pinnacle of Asian Forest Scorpions. They're shiny black, but can have a distinctive green hue under certain light, and can get up to 5" long. Because of their larger size, larger enclosures are required to ensure they have enough substrate to burrow, but as with Heterometrus silenus moist soil readily holds its shape. These guys also have a surprising affinity for water, so I would definitely recommend providing them with a deep water bowl they can fully submerge in (as long as some rocks or grip is provided to allow them to climb back out).

Pandinus imperator

Personality - 3/5 Care - 4/5 Availability - 1/5

Once the staple of scorpion enthusiasts and beginners alike, now a precautionary tale about captive breeding. Though they don't take as long to mature and gestate as Hadogenes troglyodytes, they still take a lot of time and patience to breed. It was way cheaper and easier to continue mass exports from Ghana, until their wild populations got so depleted they were put under the protection of CITIES to stop excessive exporting. Now, because so few people captive bred them, they are much less common and are much more expensive. I also think some are definitely still wild caught and illegally exported, which is also why you should take particular care with vetting any sellers before you buy one of these scorpions. If you do get one though, you can see why these scorpions were hailed everywhere as the perfect introduction to this amazing order of arachnids. Easy to care for, easygoing personality (for the most part), long lived, and one of the largest scorpions that was readily available in the hobby, there's a lot to like. Again, as a large obligate burrower more substrate and tank space will be needed, and once they do make their burrows don't expect to see them all that often, but these are still fascinating animals that help demonstrate how important it is to maintain captive populations and reduce the amount of animals that are wild caught.

Scorpio maurus

Personality - 4/5 Care - 3/5 Availability - 2/5

In my personal opinion, extremely similar to Hadrurus species but with some more things working in their favor. First off, the drawbacks that are the same. Scorpio maurus is also an obligate burrowing arid species, so is also going to need deep clay based substrate and they are also sensitive about humidity and susceptible to mycosis. They also appear to have a hard time breeding in captivity, and are almost always wild caught. The upsides are they are much, much smaller than Hadrurus species, with adults maxing out at about 2" long. This means they can build a larger burrow relative to their body length in a much smaller enclosure, so they won't take up as much space. They also have personalities rivaled by only Anuroctonus species, they readily threat pose and are super active about taking prey. They also have a shiny carapace, which makes them look very pretty. I still wouldn't expect to see them very often after they burrow, and they can still cause stress to new keepers who are worried their scorpion hasn't eaten or drank in several months, and they still have the same issues with being wild caught, but their smaller size and large personalities help make up for it.

Superstitioniidae

Superstitionia donensis

Personality - 2/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 1/5

I absolutely love this species, but I can recognize they aren't for everyone and require a bit more dedicated niche interest to get into. Their main drawback is their size, adults barely reach an inch long. If that isn't a turn off for you though, you'll be rewarded with a frequently overlooked unique gem of a scorpion. Their carapace is shiny and has bold stripes on it, and they are the only species in their family, making them unlike any other scorpion in the US. They're fairly active for their size, and very good about taking prey, and their care requirements are extremely simple. Found throughout the Southwestern United States at higher elevations, a mostly arid substrate with a corner you spray every few days and a hide is enough to keep them perfectly happy, and their small size means they won't take up much space. They aren't super readily available, and they seem a bit more difficult to find in the wild, but I would recommend giving these little guys a try.

Vaejovidae

Paravaejovis puritanus

Personality - 5/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 1/5

One of the larger Paravaejovis in the US, good for if you want something with easy straightforward care but a bit on the larger side. Adults get just over 2", and have a uniformly caramel brown coloration. Personally a species I really like, but honestly because they're hard to find I would suggest you go with a Paruroctonus silvestrii if you want a scorpion around this size.

Paravaejovis spinigerus

Personality - 5/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 5/5

Slightly smaller than Paravaejovis puritanus, adults are just under 2" long. What they lack in size though they make up for with bold stripes and bolder personalities. My personal go to recommendation for a beginner scorpion, it doesn't get better than this. They'll happily make scrapes under a hide, tolerate anything in the warmer room temperature ranges (>75F), are reliable and active eaters, readily breed in captivity, and are one of the most commonly encountered scorpions in Arizona so are wildly available in the hobby. They're way more tolerant to moister conditions and appreciate an occasional sprayed corner (though should still be kept mostly dry), and their large bulky spikey tails are very impressive for people who want a medically significant scorpion like an Androctonus but are nervous about potent venom. One of my favorite scorpions of all time.

Paruroctonus silvestrii

Personality - 5/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 2/5

For people who want larger, more humid tolerant scorpions, Paruroctonus are one of the largest scorpions in the US. Reaching almost 2.5", these guys are widespread in California and are one of the most commonly encountered scorpions in that state (their common name is the California Common Scorpion). Although they still prefer things slightly on the drier side, and wet substrate isn't a good idea, they don't mind a bit more ambient humidity and a wet corner. They also have bold stripes on their tail and extremely interesting chocolatey brown patterning on their prosoma.

Paruroctonus boreus

Personality - 4/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 2/5

Haven't kept an adult of this species yet, and again the one we have at the PDXinsectarium seems too small to be full grown. From my experience they seem fairly laid back, nothing too particularly notable besides them being the Northernmost species of scorpions in the US, with their range reaching up into Canada.

Pseudouroctonus apacheanus

Personality - 3/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 1/5

A small species, with adults being just over an inch long, Pseudouroctonus are localized in specific mountain ranges in Arizona. The two most common ones are Pseudouroctonus apacheanus and Pseudourcontonus santarita, which for all intents and purposes can be considered essentially identical. Have an interesting response to potential threats in that they freeze and become perfectly still, only to suddenly bolt when they think it's safe, so they definitely require a bit of vigilance. One of the more unique looking species of vaejovidae.

Serraditigus gertschi

Personality - 3/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 2/5

Another small species, fairly nondescript with some light patterning on the body and their signature hooked tips on the fingers of their pedipalps. A relatively active species with basic care requirements, but otherwise isn't too special. They're fairly common in California and can easily be found in that area, but are hard to come by elsewhere. This was also an interesting scorpion for me to keep because the person who sold me them said they were juvenile Paravaejovis puritanus, and once I correctly identified them I realized that not only were both of them adults, they were also both gravid females, so I've produced two broods from this species.

Smeringurus mesaensis

Personality - 5/5 Care - 4/5 Availability - 5/5

Another excellent beginner scorpion that's widely available. These get fairly large, with adults reaching right about 3" in length. Highly active species, they are very fast, bolty, and feisty, and one of the only scorpions I've had that actually attempts to sting. I would recommend larger enclosures for them, as they are very active, will readily climb shorter enclosures, and burrow in the wild. Personally, I also think these guys do great with plenty of hides to build scrapes under, and if you're going with an all sand enclosure to mimic the dunes they live on it's unlikely to hold a stable burrow. If you want to encourage burrowing, a clay/sand mixture is best. Although they are also an arid species that's sensitive to humidity and moisture, their avid feeding response makes these a less stressful animal to keep as far as worrying if your scorpion is getting enough water. Although I don't personally believe in stepping stone species (I think you should get animals because you find them interesting and not just to practice for another animal you want more), if you one day want a medically significant scorpion this is a great species to start out with. Going from a Heterometrus silenus to an Androctonus or Leiurus is not going to carry over, because Heterometrus silenus don't behave like either of those two other scorpions. But Smeringurus mesaensis are fast and not afraid to sting, so practicing good habits when caring for a Smeringurus mesaensis will actually give you applicable good habits when caring for a medically significant species.

Vaejovis carolinianus

Personality - 3/5 Care - 5/5 Availability - 1/5

Also very overlooked, unique in that it doesn't live around any other scorpion. Vaejovis carolinianus are found in the Eastern United States, and they're the only scorpions found from Alabama up into Kentucky and North Carolina. This is a good option for someone who wants a Vaejovidae scorpion but doesn't want to make an arid enclosure or worry about humidity. They also have a very pretty dark mahogany brown coloration with some mottling that makes them very interesting to look at, and they have appreciably bold personalities. Care is similar to Uroctonus mordax, moist substrate with slightly warmer temps, and they're also about 1.5" long as adults. In the wild they seem to prefer hiding under logs and loose bark, but don't burrow too much.

[morbidsmenagerie]

Shipping Scorpions Masterclass

I packed up a large order today and I thought it would be a good opportunity to show my method for shipping scorpions. This is part one of a two part post. This specific breakdown is just going to be about scorpions, but the principles can be applied to multiple kinds of inverts, and this exact method can also be used for most spiders and tarantulas, as well as certain kinds of beetles.

Part Two Here

First thing we have to do is understand some basics about heat transfer. Heat transfer in a box primarily occurs through direct contact (conduction), so the goal is to add as much insulation between the areas of conduction as possible. Dry air is a great insulator, because there is less mass close together in air so less chance for direct atom to atom heat transfer. Paper also makes a good insulator, partially because it has a low heat transfer ability and partially because it can be easily crumpled and form lots of dry air pockets. More insulation is layered on the bottom, because the bottom of the box has more direct contact with the surface that it's either going to be gaining or losing heat from (think of it sitting on outside on the frozen ground or on hot pavement). The other main form of heat gain is from the sun, which is a bit harder to deal with. The sun transfers heat through radiation, and an enclosed space sitting in the sun will easily get an inside temperature much hotter than the surrounding air temperature (think of your car). The thing with insulation is it works both ways, although it slows down the heat gain from the surrounding area, it also slows down the release of heat if the outside temperature is cooler than the inside of the box. This is great to insulate from cold outside temperatures, but in hot environments this can cause heat to slowly build up in the box over time, especially over the course of multiple days and exposure to extreme temperatures. This can also create a "greenhouse" effect if you're using a heat pack during shipping and have a completely enclosed Styrofoam wall around the entire box. The heat pack will continue to release heat, but the heat in the box will have no where to go. If using a heat pack and Styrofoam, cutting some holes in the box or leaving the lid of the Styrofoam off will give the heat some chance to escape, while also appreciably protecting the inside from heat loss through wind or through direct contact with the cold ground.

Because of how these factors play together, shipping in heat is much more dangerous than shipping in the cold. Invertebrates also tend to die quicker in extreme heat, while they can get fairly cold for short amounts of time and just have a slower metabolism for that time. Generally, you should avoid shipping above 90F or below freezing. The most dangerous time is when the box is on the truck at the destination city and being driven around before being delivered, as most of those truck are not temperature controlled, and they would be essentially sitting outside for a number of hours. If temperatures are beyond these limits and the shipping cannot wait, please consider shipping hub to hub (the hold for pickup options) so that the box is kept inside in the destination city. Using heat and cold packs is up to seller discretion, typically I would recommend to try to keep the inside of the box as close to 70F as possible, and determine if the temperatures are extreme enough that a heat or cold pack is the only reliable way to achieve that.

This specific paper pictured here is packing insulation I got from Fedex, but crumpled newspaper, paper towels, or any other kind of paper that can form sturdy insulation with a lot of air gaps can be used. Personally I don't use loose packing material like packing peanuts, and I generally don't use Styrofoam at all, but several other sellers use Styrofoam to reinforce the box and for it's better insulation properties.

For larger scorpions, we line a deli cup with paper. It consists of a folded square of paper towel at the bottom, and a loose ring of folded paper towel around the edge. This provides a space for them to sit in while cushioning their surroundings in case the box is handled roughly. Depending on the species, they may or may not need the paper towel to be sprayed. Arid species shouldn't need to be sprayed at all, while everything else might need a light misting. Regardless, the paper towel should never be saturated. If condensation immediately forms on the sides of the cup or the paper towel is dripping wet, wring it out until its just moist to the touch. Too much humidity makes the air a poor insulator.

The cup is finished off with another square of paper. Ventilation holes should be added, scorpions have very low metabolic requirements and can survive quite a while without fresh air, but it's still better to add them. There should be just enough to provide some air exchange but not so much that it would dry out the inside of the cup too quickly. Some tape on the edge prevents the cup from accidentally opening during shipping, or from the scorpion from pushing the lid open. Only a light amount of tape is needed, too much tape can be a pain to remove and risks sticking to the animal if a lot of it is left on the lid and sides. I use this deli cup method for almost all of the scorpions I ship. For very large scorpions, a large deli cup or a small food storage container can work under the same principles.

How the scorpions are packing into the larger shipping box is dependent on what or how much you're shipping. If it was just a handful of larger containers, they can be safely packed directly into the box. Because I am also shipping several smaller scorplings, I'm using a double containment method to keep the smaller containers from shifting around. We do this by forming a larger version of the deli cup using a food storage container. For small scorplings, I use paint containers. Setting up and packing the smaller scorplings will be discussed in part two.

[morbidsmenagerie]

Shipping Scorpions Masterclass Part 2

In this part I'll show you how to pack small scorplings, as well as pack everything into the actual box.

Part One Here

Scorplings are at a much higher risk of desiccation. Even arid scorplings can desiccate fairly quickly. Small scorplings can also drown easily in excess moisture and condensation, so making sure the container isn't too wet either is also important. To provide them a moist cushion to sit in, I use spaghnum moss. This moss has been soaking overnight, so it's very saturated. As with the paper towel, too much moisture can also be dangerous. I take small pieces of this moss and squeeze it out until its slightly damp.

Again, I poke enough holes for some air exchange but not enough to dry out the container too much. The size of the scorpling determines how much moss to put in. There isn't any reason to pack it down or compress it into the container, it's primarily there to fill space and provide a cushion and something to grab onto. The moss will expand slightly, and should remain in place when the container is flipped. There should be enough space that the scorpling can comfortably move around, but not so much that the moss or the scorpling would bounce around if the package was suddenly jostled. You can test it by inverting the container, if the moss stays at the top and the scorpion can adjust it's position, you've put in the right amount. If the moss immediately falls to the lid, you might need to add a bit more. If the moss doesn't move but the scorpion looks like it's having trouble righting itself, take some moss out.

Pack the smaller cups into the larger outer container. I like to roll up or bunch up extra paper towels, to ensure the smaller containers are snugly fitted into the larger container. For this particular order, I put the 10 Paravaejovis spinigerus on the bottom layer, folded up a square of paper towel and put that over them, then put the 5 Tityus stigmurus around the top layer with the Uroctonus Mordax in the middle. Balled up paper towels between the Tityus stigmurus kept this whole arrangement in place.

Then I rolled up additional paper towels and put them around the edge of the Uroctonus mordax container to keep the smaller Tityus stigmurus containers from bouncing. This whole thing was enclosed in the lid. There are many ways to pack containers depending on how many you have, but on the end result gently shaking the container should provide almost no movement of the inside cups. For this particular outer food storage container, it had a dip in the middle of the lid that I cut out to make it fit. If this wasn't there, cutting in some larger air holes or vents is recommended. This container was lightly taped down to keep it from opening during shipping.

This container was then placed in the box, and insulation was packing into the sides and top to keep it securely in place. Again, gently shaking the box should provide almost no movement. If you are using a heat or cold pack, it should be loosely wrapped in paper (and put in a plastic bag if leaking is a concern) and added to the side of the box. There's no reason to put it directly on the container, and this could cause localized extreme temperatures. Make sure you are reading and following all direction on the package before you use any heating or cooling devices. I personally prefer the UniHeat heat packs and the Cryopak Phase 22 cold packs.

I hope this tutorial was helpful and gave you some good pointers on shipping inverts.

[morbidsmenagerie]

I sent in the ask asking about how to tell if a scorpion is mature or not the other day

This is my scorpion

I don't wanna bother them to much but I was wondering your opinion on if it's mature or not, I'm thinking mature based off of your post but I do know

Yeah that's a Heterometrus silenus, I would say adult but you miiiight get another molt in if they're a bigger individual.

[morbidsmenagerie]

hi i love your whole setup <3 i'm about to start keeping inverts and i was wondering if you'd be willing to do a little tour of your enclosures, how they're set up, and where you got them? if that's a lot to ask, do you have any general recommendations on where to get enclosures for inverts?

It highly depends on what kind of invert you want to get, theres a lot of different types and lifestyles they inhabit so they have different care requirements. I've mentioned on here before where I get my specific plastic enclosures, but you definitely don't have to get special stuff. My original enclosures before I went on hiatus were various plastic bins with holes drilled into them. Part of why I like bug keeping, it tends to be really cheap. I would recommend staying away from most of the "habitat kits" and such that a lot of invert sellers sell though, again you want something more specifically tailored to your invert and most of the time theres easier and cheaper ways to put together and enclosure. I dont know if this helps? But it's a broad topic.

[morbidsmenagerie]

@ovvscolofex Unfortunately arachnid first aid is in its infancy, most of the knowledge we have about it is based on the tarantula keeping community, which pioneer such techniques as superglueing together breaks in the cuticle and inducing your tarantula to have a fever by keeping them hot to cure nematodes. These techniques mainly deal with breaks from drops, broken limbs, or other physical trauma to the tarantula. As of right now, no one knows how to cure bacterial or fungal infections once they've colonized the cuticle of the arachnid. Mycosis kills a lot of desert scorpions, even the smallest spot will quickly spread or cause the fungus to break off and circulate in the scorpions blood stream, and as of right now no one has any idea how to cure it.

This isn't mycosis, this is an altogether different thing. You have to appreciate what it feels like dealing with something so unknown. I don't know if its bacterial or fungal, or if it's dangerous, and how dangerous it is. I don't know if it will spread and kill her, or if it's just natural discoloration. No one really knows, because such things have never been studied before. Arachnid keeping as a whole is still a new subject, even more so than herp and reptile keeping.

The hermit crab treatments have been proven to cure fungal and bacterial infections on the cuticle of an arthopod, and that route seems safer than trying to use human remedies like using neosporin or something. The dosage of the bath is already adjusted to a small arthopod, and the ingredients have been proven to be nontoxic to at least some brand of arthopod (again, much less risk than using a human antiseptic).

As for whether or not the actual soaking itself is cruel, that's just silly. Tropical scorpions (especially heterometrus) have been shown time and time again to willingly enter bodies of water both in the wild and in captivity.

(the first pic is mine, the second I got off fb somewhere)

https://youtu.be/JN8_PLHW0Q4

Video of a scorpion (from an arid region at that!) walking along the bottom of a pool.

This is from František Kovarík's "Illustrated Catalog of Scorpions Part 1", the range of how long scorpions can hold their breath ranges from a couple days to well over a week, I typically say 2-3 days if people ask.

From the same book, the range of p. viatoris is listed as "West Africa", with the particular scorpion he was studying coming from Zambia.

This is in the "wet" band throughout the middle of Africa, which ranges from tropical regions in the central area to temperate forests and "woodland savanna" with seasonal heavy rains. I have stated several times I would not bathe a scorpion from an arid or semiarid environment, as they are much less equiped to deal with standing water.

I also place the scorpion in a dry dish and then slowly fill it up with the bathwater, so she has time to realize what's happening and close her spiracles (essentially "taking a breath"). I don't just dunk her into the water, and as previously stated I observe her the whole time and don't leave her longer than 10 minutes. It is no more cruel than cleaning out your dogs ears or giving medicine to your snake, of course they're going to be a little uncomfortable, but you're doing what's best for them.

[morbidsmenagerie]

How do you keep mold and fungus from growing in your enclosures? I had a pill bug colony start growing some weird fungus looking stuff.

Springtails are amazing! They won't stop mold once it's already established, but a healthy springtail population will keep molt from cropping up. In my isopod enclosures I also wet only the subtrate, not the leaf litter on top, and only feed on the dry side.

[morbidsmenagerie]

Scorpion Tank Sizing

Just thought I'd make a quick tutorial about how to choose an accurate size tank for your scorpion (or tarantula honestly), since it's a question I get asked a lot.

Scorpions do not follow typical reptile or fish logic, where larger tanks are better. They have an ideal range that I normally gauge as 2.5-10x body length. This accounts for enough room to molt comfortably, but no so much room that the scorpion has trouble finding food or could easily "get lost". Scorpions are amazing hiders and can burrow in the substrate or squeeze between small spaces in the decor. This could be very dangerous, as a hidden scorpion could easily sting you if you put your hands in the enclosure for cage maintenance. It's better to keep the cages smaller and simpler to avoid this.

This is about the smallest I would go for an enclosure.

This scorpion has plenty of space to molt and move about his enclosure, but the enclosure is small and simple enough (only one hide) that it is easy to always keep track of him.

This is the largest enclosure I would recommend in relation to size. Even though the enclosure is large, there is still minimal hides so it is again easy to always keep track of her.

A larger enclosure allows a more controlled humidity gradient, a water dish, and multiple hides and interesting tank layouts. Care must be taken, however, to not loose live food in the enclosure, as its nearly impossible to find it again.

For arboreal and burrowing scorpions, vertical space must also be taken into account. With both of these types I'd recommend a smaller floor space to again minimize the risk of loosing your scorpion, especially with arboreal scorpions as they are fast and tend to be more potent.

The vertical hide for arboreals doen't need to be huge, but the scorpion needs to be able to fit comfortably on the hide, as they molt vertically and use gravity to escape their old exoskeleton.

Burrowing scorpions need enough substrate to comfortably support a burrow, which is typically having substrate that is at least 2x the length of the scorpion deep.

[morbidsmenagerie]

I'm really curious about the medicinal bath, would you mind explaining what it is / how it works? How long can they stay submerged like that?

The concept of the medicinal bath was taking out of something hermit crab keepers use to treat fungal and bacterial infections in hermit crabs.

This is the link I found that explained the concept and how its supposed to work. I use all these ingredients, as well as indian almond leaf and burdock root. Burdock root is also a known antiseptic, and the indian almond leaf comes from betta fish keepers and their use of it to create blackwater.

This kind of talks about the use of blackwater in aquariums.

Essentially, I'm pulling all these peices together to make a general antibacterial and antifungal bath. The idea is to use it as a gentle way to treat wounds or infection. My pandinus viatoris has been getting bathed because of the extent of her injuries on her carapace, and some discoloration I've noticed.

I'm not sure how bad the damage is, or if it's at risk of infection (or the discoloration is due to an infection), so an antiseptic bath was the best idea I could hope for. You have to understand that arthopod first aid is not a subject anyone really knows anything about, and almost all care we give to our arthopods is based on word of mouth and trying things out. You should see how wild the tarantula people get.

I'm not really a natural healing essential oil kind of person, but plants do have some medicinal properties (which is why we make concentrated extracts out of them, like in aspirin). The unfortunate thing is, a dose geared towards helping out a human will more than likely kill something as small as a scorpion, so in my opinion using the herbal remedy at much lower concentrations and intensities is a lot safer than, say, covering the scorpion with neosporin.

As for how safe the bath itself is, scorpions can hold their breath for quite a long time! They have one of the lowest metabolisms of any animal on the planet, and can reportedly go 24-48 hours underwater (Goweirdfacts says scorpions can live underwater for 6 days). I don't let mine soak for longer than 10 minutes, and I watch her during the whole process in case she starts struggling or freaking out. I also pour in the water slowly instead of dropping her into submersion, so she can figure out what's going on and "take a breath" so to speak.

Now there does have to be a bit of a disclaimer here, pandinus and heterometrus species are the only species I would try this with. Desert species are very sensitive to moisture, and wetting them like this is likely to give them mycosis. They also have less of an instinct to "hold their breath" and are much more likely to drown. In the wild, however, pandinus and heterometrus regularly submerge themselves in pools of water (heterometrus especially, they're damn near aquatic).

My own heterometrus spinifer all but uses her pool as a hide, and she regularly soaks. Admittedly pandinus are less prone to this, but the ones that come from the tropical regions of Africa (such as Congo and Cameroon locality emperor scorpions) are much more comfortable in and around water.

Hope this answers your questions and clears some stuff up!

[morbidsmenagerie]

Someone asked me this on one of my posts and I wanted to be a bit more in depth. Tailing is basically the safest, most efficient method to move scorpions from one place to another.

https://i0.wp.com/backwaterreptilesblog.com/wp-content/uploads/picking-up-scorpion.jpg?resize=650%2C975&ssl=1

Basically, it involves using fingers, tweezers, or forceps to grab onto the base of a scorpions sting and lift them up by the tail. I personally would not use fingers, as even a calm scorpion can sting very quickly, and when you pick them up, they can reach up and pinch your fingerrs.

I have a selection of entemology forceps to move my scorpions, and to feed and maintencence their tanks.

Tailing can be used to move almost any scorpion, and it minimizes the risk to yourself and the scorpion. This is especially crucial when dealing with hot species. All medically significant species except the smallest ones and the youngest instars can be tailed, and it is highly recommended that you do so. There are some scorpions that shouldn't be tailed through, and I've listed these with alternative methods for transporting.

Baby scorpions/small species:

Scorpions less than 1.5" in length should not be tailed. They are much too small and delicate and it's easy to misjudge pressure at the end of a forcep. My preferred method for moving these is taking a shred of paper towel, coaxing the scorpion onto the paper towel, and then coaxing it off in its new container. This can be done with fingers, but for extemely small or medically significant species you should hold the paper towel with forceps and coax with a small stick or twig.

Premolt/Gravid scorpions:

Premolt and gravid scorpions should not be moved when at all possible. At this point, their bodies are too heavy for their tail to support them and they should not be tailed. If you absolutely have to move them, the paper towel method works above for smaller individuals, or handling them directly for larger individuals. I do not recommend handling for all but the most extrenuating circumstances. Care should be taken that the scorpion does not fall, as even a short drop could severely injure it.

Large species/small tailed species:

Extremely large species or species with extremely small tails in relation to body size (such as hadogenes) should not be tailed. Their bodies are normally too heavy for their tail to support them. Small individuals (such as young hadogenes) can be moved using the paper towel method. Large individuals can be moved by handling or simply tipping them from one container to another.

Special cases:

People with difficulties of fine motor control, or who would be unable to controll pressure at the end of a pair of forceps, should not keep medically significant scorpions. However, most other scorpions can be moved using a very large (large enough that the scorpion fits comfortably in) metal spoon. You have to be quick using this method, and its hard to fine a usable utensil once the scorpion is over 3" in length. At this point, however, tipping from one container to another works.

Hope this helps!

[morbidsmenagerie]

I saw another story of isopods used in CUC eating the animal they were kept with. So many times I've heard people say "I didn't know they eat meat" or get surprised when I tell them that they need protien. I think this is because most people liken them to millipedes, which almost exclusively eat wood and leaves. Isopods are not like millipedes though, to get a better understanding of isopod feeding behaviors and nutritional needs, you should think of them like shrimp and crabs. They are crustaceans, after all, and their eating patterns are extremely similar to shrimp. And, if you're knowledgable about aquaria, you also know the dangerous about keeping large shrimp and crayfish with other animals. Just something to consider.

[morbidsmenagerie]

Hi! Sorry to bother you, but do you have any isopod advice? I recently got some dwarf whites and I want to also put some dairy cows in the same enclosure bit I've had mixed reviews about whether or not that's a bad idea. Also any general advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much, I love your blog!

It depends on why, if you want the dwarf whites to be a clean up crew I would say it's unneccessary, dairy cows are highly protien aggressive and will eat any remains that are left in the tank, so theres not really a need for a second isopod decomposer. If you just want to keep them together, dwarf whites typically eat within the soil and laevis typically eat on the surface, so as long as plenty of food is provides in both niches they shouldn't outcompete each other, but they both reproduce quickly and you'll be more space limited, so I would use a larger enclosure.

[morbidsmenagerie]

How do you provide water for your inverts? I just got a vinegaroon, and I don't want her to drown in a water dish.

I've never had a vinegaroon, but some larger or tropical species can work fine with a water dish. I'm pretty sure vinegaroons will do fine with a water dish, as long as theres pebbles and its not big enough for them to fully get in the dish, just their mouthparts can get in. For arid species, right now I have a water crystal in the corner, and I drip water on the water crystal. They don't get water from the gel, the water crystal just soaks up the excess water so that there isnt a droplet formed on the surface of the substrate. I also mist with a very fine hair mister.