A few months back, my Italian friend, Tita, spoke to me about his ideas for making a scorpion vivarium as an attraction at Ruai bar; fitted with UV lights to illuminate numerous scorpions as they crawl about in a terrarium enclosure. The plan was kept on the shelf since Ruai bar was pending relocation. Soon after the move, Tita gave me a call to follow up on this project. This is how it went.
The enclosure was an old fish tank that the bar had lying around. Handyman extraordinaire, Tita constructed the rig for the aquarium to be fitted at the end of the bar against the wall. Both of us did our share in constructing the secure light-fitted lid.
The idea behind the setup was to provide sufficient hiding spaces for many scorpions without diminishing their inclination to come out and be 'seen' during the night. In any case it was ideal to have their pre-made burrows facing the clearing before the waterbowl and visible from the front so that scorpions that lurked from their burrows could still be seen.
The farthest bark hide to right was propped up against the front glass to allow a cutaway view of a den. The foreground driftwood has a burrow that opened facing the front view. The driftwood pieces were novelty items that Ruai bar had lying around. Other pieces were collected scrap from various locations. The halved-bamboo trunk came from remnants of construction materials used to construct the bar. A mossy brick was placed in the immediate foreground, primarily to keep the waterbowl in place; also to add surface variety to the terrain.
A gap was intentionally left between the largest driftwood and the back glass panel. Filled with substrate, it formed a narrow alleyway at a higher elevation from the foreground substrate; so scorpions crawling at the back of the terrarium would still be visible from the front. At its completion, this project used up almost 4 buckets of coco-fiber.
For the forest floor to closer resemble their natural habitat, some leftover ExxoTerra Forest Bark was used up to cover any bare surface of coco-fiber.
Additionally, generic generic bark-bedding for reptiles and some gravel+sand mix was sprinkled in several places to break-up the uniformity of the surface layer.
Lining the waterbowl perimeter with gravel prevented substrate from washing back into the bowl when it was over-flooded for hydrating the enclosure.
Tita picked up the plants from the back alley behind the bar. Truth be told, Kuching city is blissfully laden with greenery. The ferns, still attached to their tangle of roots and tendrils, were wedged into the 'ditch' between the two large pieces of driftwood.
The bar's proprietor had some orchid moss lying around which he happily suggested to be included to the setup. He also provide the deer skull; a wall-mounted decoration which added a macabre touch to the natural looking enclosure.
Alas the Finished Product... All in all this setup took 3 hours to complete; awaiting its intended inhabitants
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Heterometrus longimanus... most of which were acquired as rescued strays.
Over the course of a year, some friends of mine had started catching scorpions that they had found wandering into their houses and kept them alive for me. As a result I had a surplus of male
H. longimanus ready for this exhibit.
This spacious Vivarium enclosure was certainly a far cry from the tubs I had kept them in.
Within an hour of their relocation, many of them began exploring their new home. Despite them all being males, there were only brief, minor scuffles over hiding spots and food, ending typically in a hasty parting of ways.
I hope to introduce some females at some point as soon as I find some individuals that were not overtly territorial.
Mission accomplished; an eye-catching vivarium exhibit featuring some fascinating creatures 'illuminated' against their 'natural' environment in a manner which most people rarely see first hand; undoubtedly the most attractive aspect of this exhibit - UV magic!!!
The response was considerably encouraging. It was indeed a good feeling to see many people approach these highly misunderstood creatures with a rare sense of fascination instead of instinctual fear. Needless to say, it was a true privilege be a part of this rather 'original' endeavor. Ultimately, it gave the public an opportunity to marvel and appreciate these creatures through a refreshingly new experience. Apart from being the largest terrarium project I've ever undertaken, it amounted to an educational conversation piece at the very least. Thank you Ruai bar for making it happen!
Cheers and Best Regards
