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Whenever Cupid meets someone new, they almost always seem to ask questions. Below are questions and answers Cupid is asked most often. Does it hurt when he stings? Is he poisonous? I heard a few scorpions glow. Can he? My scorpion has stopped eating. Why? I think my Emperor is pregnant. How can I find out for sure? What is the white chalky stuff in my scorpion's terrarium? My scorpion is trying to climb the glass. Why?!? Can Cupid live with other scorpions? ==== The chances of getting stung by Cupid and other Emperors are slim. Unless your Emperor has a very aggressive personality, you have to provoke it quite a bit before it will ever sting you. When an Emperor stings it hurts, but is generally not life threatening. Although if you are allergic to the toxin it can very well be deadly. The toxin in the Emperor's venom is about as toxic as a bee. So if you are allergic to a bee sting, an Emperor scorpion sting can have deadly results. If you don't know if you are allergic or not, PLEASE don't be a fool and find out the hard way. For the most part, all scorpions are poisonous only if you are an insect. The venom of most scorpions has never been analyzed. This is because it has been shown that the sting of most scorpions are not life-threatening to humans. It is also important to remember that even a nearly nontoxic species can cause death if the victim has a severe allergic reaction to the venom. back to top ==== In most public exhibits of scorpions, fluorescence of scorpions is featured strongly. Longwave ultraviolet light when shone upon the scorpion is absorbed and reflected as greenish visible light. In direct sunlight, the same greenish tinge of the scorpion may be observed because of the sun's own UV rays. While it is fun to see your scorpion under a black light. Do not do this all the time. It has been found that scorpions lose the ability to fluoresce if they are left under a black light for long periods of time. It is believed that they will be able to fluoresce after long-periods of non-exposure to the UV light waves. back to top ==== Scorpions stop eating for a number of reasons: ==== The pleural membrane (soft tissue areas) of the Emperor scorpion is too thick to see the embryos as you can with many other species. There is no sure way to determine if an Emperor scorpion is pregnant until it gives birth. Having a "fat" appearance is no guarantee the scorpion is pregnant. If your scorpion has had babies (scorplings or nymphs) continue making sure the mother scorpion has enough prey to eat. It will not be uncommon for the mother to eat one of the scorplings if it strays too far. She'll even offer up a mashed up cricket to the young while they are on her back. After a few months, when the scorplings have molted a few times, it may be wise to separate them. Small deli containers or a few in a critter carrier will be sufficiant. Feed them small pin-head sized crickets. back to top ==== The white stuff on the scorpion or smeared somewhere in the terrarium is feces. This is normal. Scorpions usually extend their tails and wipe it off on the substrate or other part of the terrarium. Sometimes they get messy and get it on themselves. This is nothing to worry about. Cupid is waiting to get some good toilet paper to help keep things clean. back to top ==== It all depends on what type of scorpion it is. With well over 1000 known species you can find scorpions of all sizes. There are several very small species, but the smallest may be Microtityus waeringi, which measures a scant 12 mm when fully grown. One of the smallest scorpions in the United States is Vaejovis waueri, which reaches a length of 23 mm. Someone that is on one of Cupid's mailing lists has a V. waueri that has lived in a flower pot in his kitchen. We bet he doesn't have a problem with fruit flys! As far as length is concerned, Cupid and I don't know of an actual world
record, but the South African Rock Scorpion is probably the longest. Males may
reach 21 cm in length. But these scorpions are very flat and possess very long,
narrow metasoma (tail), so they are probably not be the largest by weight. ==== Scorpions can do this for a number of reasons. The first thing I should mention is that scorpions cannot climb glass, so no worry about them escaping. Young scorplings have been known to be able to climb up the silicon sealant in the corners though. Scorpions like to wander. The glass walls stop this from occurring yet they will try. Also, if your scorpion drives you up the wall by trying to climb it's walls, make sure the temperature and humidity levels are OK. back to top ==== This is a topic I personally hate. It is important to keep in mind that scorpions, like most animals, are territorial and my not take kindly to visitors. To keep it short and to the point, yes, Emperor scorpions can live communally with other Emperors. Make sure you have plenty of space (5 gallons per scorpion), that there is enough food (so the don't cannibalize each other), and don't be too surprised if one scorpion does get out of hand and attack the others. back to top |
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