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furian55

Arachnopeon
Joined
Sep 5, 2005
Messages
6
I just got my first three scorps (one Emperor and 2 desert hairies) and i have a few questions
1) is it ok to house the desert hairy scorps together. they've been together for a few days and have had no problems.
2) can a lone large emp be kept in a tupperware sweader box or is that two small.
3) is there anyway to sex the scorps
4) is it ok to use mealworms as a scorps main food item
5) does anyone have any books or websites I can use 2 learn the scientific names of comman species. I get a little lost because of the big words.



Any info will be a great help
 

Eurypterid

Arachnerd
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 7, 2003
Messages
492
Welcome! Good choices for first scorps.

Answers to your questions:

1) As long as your enclosure is big enough (probably anything like a 10 gallon tank or so) and you have adequate hides, you can probably keep them together. They are not the most communal species around, but several people on here have reported success in keeping them together.

2) A sweater box should be just fine for a single emp.

3)Check out this thread. There is info on there specifically for the emp, and the same method applies to your desert hairies.

4) Mealworms are fine as food for the scorps, though a little variety (crickets, roaches, etc.) is good for them.

5)The best site for learning scientific names for various scorps would be The Scorpion Files.

Good luck. Hope you enjoy the scorps and become an active member here!
 
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Eurypterid

Arachnerd
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 7, 2003
Messages
492
Actually, I realized after I posted that The Scorpion Files, while having a very good list of scientific names, does not cross-list them with common names. The best source of common names cross-listed with scientific names is a pdf file you can download from the American Arachnological Society by clicking here. It is the offical list of common names of arachnids, listed first by common name and then by scientific name. There aren't many scorpions on their list, but most of the common ones are. Unfortunately, there are a lot more spiders on the list, so you have to wade through them to find the scorps if you look at the common name list. It's easier to go all the way to the bottom and look at the scientific name list, where all the scorpions are listed together.

Keep in mind though that common names are not standard in their usage, so a lot of common names are not going to be found on this list. For example "Death Stalker", which is the name most frequently used by hobbyists for Leiurus quinquestriatus is not on the list, because its "official" common name is actually fivekeeled gold scorpion (which is on the list).
 
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fusion121

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
May 31, 2003
Messages
2,015
Eurypterid said:
its "official" common name is actually fivekeeled gold scorpion (which is on the list).
I did not know that :confused: Death stalker has a much nicer ring to it
 

Eurypterid

Arachnerd
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 7, 2003
Messages
492
fusion121 said:
I did not know that :confused: Death stalker has a much nicer ring to it
Fivekeeled gold scorpion is much more descriptive, however. Since it is the only scorpion with 5 keels, that is actually an identifying characteristic. And "Deathstalker" has some problems too, since it is often applied to members of the genus Androctonus (the fattailed scorpions), and it probably attracts the wrong sort of attention to the scorpion as well. Though I admit, it sounds cooler. But it is exactly the kind of name that is likely to encourage the wrong type of people to keep it, and also the type of name that the media would go nuts with if anyone ever ended up in the hospital or morgue because they got seriously nailed by any exotic scorp.
 

prang11

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 18, 2005
Messages
369
1)As long as they are close to the same size, maybe. Everything I have ever read sayes NO.
2) Aslong as it is close to 2-3 gallons the emp will be just fine.
3) Yes, good luck on making it a 100% official guess though.
4) As far as I have read crickets are the best way to go. The nutrients they offer are much higher than meal worms even though they smell much worse. Either way, mix it up every month or so.
5) www.scorpionfiles.com or www.scorpionfauna.com are both excelent sites.



Welcome to the hobby. Have fun with the addiction!!!
 

Raan_Jodus

Arachnodemon
Old Timer
Joined
Oct 18, 2003
Messages
744
1) You can keep 2 desert hairies in a 10gal tank rather well. Preferable is 1 male 1 female, just so that they have a better tolerance of each other. Deep sand for digging and several pieces of wood or rocks. I would suggest keeping an eye on them just in case. My experience lasted 3 months of a male and female in a 10gal tank. In the end, my female was dead, but I believe it was due to old age.

Feel free to check the search function, there have been several experiments on desert hairy communality. Including a pairing of the subspeices Spadix with a Arizonensis. (I think it was Kuegallagers)
 

furian55

Arachnopeon
Joined
Sep 5, 2005
Messages
6
Thanks guys I beleive the desert hairies are a large female and a small male but im not to sure. ill try to upload pics later so maybe someone can confirm my beliefs please. I was wondering if there are any sorces giving detailed driscripions of the species's behavior and mating rituals. I am very interested in breeding them and would likeany help i can get.
 

Raan_Jodus

Arachnodemon
Old Timer
Joined
Oct 18, 2003
Messages
744
careful the female isnt too much bigger than the male, you might end up with a dead male.
 

fusion121

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
May 31, 2003
Messages
2,015
Size doesn't really seem to be an issue with sexual cannibalism. It seems to mostly determined by the female’s appetite, a well fed female scorpion is very unlikely to bother attacking her mate, a hungry one though will attempt it much more readily. If you feed a female with excess crickets the night before a mating, sexual cannibalism should not be an issue.
 
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