can I use clay soil with hadrurus?

Hi, it's my first post here so may I start by saying what a great community this looks like! I've kept pandinus and heterometrus before and my vaejovis spinigerus seems quite happy (are they ever?) but, I'd like to add a desert hairy scorpion to the collection. I've read loads about excavator clay and sand mix for burrowing. Where I live (UK) my garden has almost pure clay soil, could I mix this with sand or not? I've read alsorts about using bentonite and clay cat litter but nothing mentions garden clay. Thanks in advance!

Just make sure it is pesticide free. I have a Hadrurus spadix in a large tank with a mix of sand, excavator clay and coco fiber. If you can't find excavator clay, you might try to get the natural red clay that pottery folks use. I have read that you can dissolve that in water and then mix it with sand. Let it completely dry out and that should hold burrows no problem...I would be very careful using any substrate from outside as you don't really know what is in it.

Ah, thank you! I think you're right and I'm best playing it safe. The clay here's about two feet down and I know there's never been pesticides used but I didn't think about bacteria etc. I'll have a shop around tomorrow for some proper excavator clay. Thanks again.

Yes, you can. however go easy on it.


For the best substrate, you will need sand AND silt (which is very fine sand).

the clay should be used sparingly, enough to bind the substrate together, but not so much as to create hardpan.

It's best to get dry clay, then pulverize it into a very fine powder, mix equal parts sand and silt, and a small portion of pulverized clay. The clay acts as a binder, keeping the sand just right for burrowing scorpions.

+1 on above. Also, if you're using clay from your yard, make sure you sterilize it. Pulverize it and bake it before you put it in. When you bake, though, be careful and make sure it's pretty finely broken up. Heat bubbles can get trapped inside clay and can go boom if you aren't careful.

Thank you for the responses, I decided to play safe in the enclosure and used a mix of about 40% fine play sand, 25% bird grit, 15% dry eco earth and 20% zoomed excavator clay. I put a gravel false bottom in as well and left it dry but just so the option to use it was there. The H. arizonensis seems to love it and he's already made quite a good couple of tunnels (against the glass luckily). I've done the same for my Scorpio maurus and vaejovis and they are having fun with it too! I think I'm going to try some of the natural clay mixes set up in a viv without a scorpion in it so I can see how they fare. Next challenge is to try to get hold of some blue death feigning beetles! No one has them here in the UK and the best shipping from the state's I was quoted was nearly $1000!