H. arizonensis info sheet By John

This is a write up from John "Pandinus" on Arachnoboards.

pandinus wrote:

Desert hairies seem to be the "in" scorpion right now, and there are numerous threads popping up left and right about them, so i decided to create a write up of the essentials needed for the desert hairy. this is also a thread for people to ask questions, so that there arent 500 desert hairy questions floating around. so here are some basic facts, and feel free to ask any questions after reading


H. arizonensis is a member of the Caraboctinidae family (moved recently from family Iuridae). It is native to the south western United states including Arizona(duh) Nevada, Utah, and southern california, as well as extending down into mexico. As the common name suggests, this is a xeric scorpion which lives in desert regions in its habitat. while rare on sand dunes it is found in the wild under logs and rocks occasionally, but is typically found in deep burrows which can be in excess of over a foot. this is the largest species of scorpion found in the United states, and is known to reach lengths of up to 14cm(5.5 in). though not particularly toxic and not considered dangerous to a healthy human, the sting is considered to be very painful though as stated not medically significant. The desert hairy is a slow growing scorpion, and has possibly the longest lifespan of any scorpions some specimens having been recorded as living for 25 years. typically these are very defensive scorpions that will sting readily, and according to some literature an excessively irritated specimen is able to spray venom from its acueles, though many experts are somewhat doubtful and this is at the very least an incredibly rare occurence. living in dry arid conditions, this scorpion does not tolerate high humidity, and is highly susceptable to mycosis infections. they are very active scorpions that often intricate burrows and regularly alter and excavate like little bulldozers. while not absolutely mandatory, this is one scorpion that benefits from a larger enclosure, and is much more likely to use the extra space. the author has had the best luck with these scorpions in a 10 gallon tank though many use 5 gallons. in any case, a deep substrate should be provided to allow the scorpion to burrow properly. a good depth is 6-8" of substrate, though the scorpion will go as deep as you let it so feel free to use more. the substrate needs to be able to support burrows without collapsing. several substrates ore used to achieve this stability. the author personaly uses excavator substrate by zoo-med with good success. others recommend packing wet sand tightly, and still others reccomend mixtures of sand and soil or peatmoss packed down tightly. the key to using any substrate is to wet it first and pack it down tightly so it compresses together, but you must be absoultey 100% sure that the substrate is completely dry before introducing the scorpion. these scorpions do well at temperatures between 75-85F, and as with all scorpions, if using a heat mat, never place on the bottom of the enclosure as the scorpion burrows down to escape heat and so will do harm to itself if the heat is placed on the bottom of the tank. water dishes are typically neither required or used, and the scorpion will get the moisture it needs from its food. these scorpions are typically considered to be very aggressive to conspecifics, and are highly cannibalistic by nature. in the wild they are solitary, coming together only to mate. for this reason it is highly reccomended that this species not be kept communaly as the majority of cases where this has been attempted have ended in tragedy. breeding H arizonensis in captivity is a very difficult thing to do. since the adults are very aggressive, many times mating attempts turn ugly. in addition, female desert hairies are particularly notorious for eating their newborns at the slightest disturbance, or sometimes for seemingly no reason at all. another problem that arises is the fact that young desert hairies often times have difficulty molting in captivity, and often times failed molting is fatal. this no doubt is related to the dry well ventilated needs of the desert hairy coming into conflict with the requirement of increased humidity needed for young scorplings to moult properly, and finding the perfect balance has proved to be exceedingly difficult to hobbyists. in addition to a deep substrate, hides should also be provided and the desert hairy will often times begin its burrow underneath a hide, especially if the hide itself is also partially burried. some desert hairies can be persuaded to adopt a pre burrow made by the hobbyist against the glass to encourage the scorpion to burrow alongside the glass so that it is visible at all times.


john