My 1st Death Stalker (Lieurus quinquestriatus) - in Malaysia! Need advice on Breeding

Thanks for understanding alex.

1. I've read that no water is required whatsoever. To what extent is this true and why?

-Mine had water for one night, the next morning all three had mycosis. No water, period.

2. What are its eating habits like? I've never caught it in the act of eating yet so I'm rather curious. I think the slowly dissipating number of mealworms is a reasonable indicator of it actually eating but I ca never be sure. Furthermore how regularly should I feed it? The one i have currently did not seem interested in crickets.

-I've seen mine with a cricket in each claw and one dragged into the mouth with it's tail. Awesome to watch.

3. Are desert scorpions susceptible to any kind of undesirable conditions in captivity? I'm new to desert species.

-Mycosis, very susceptible.

5. Do they need ample heat for any period of time? I live in a tropical country, so I never have problems with inverts succumbing to cold.

-Never gave mine any source of heat.

4. What is the lifespan and how many moults do they undergo?

-Don't know a timeframe but I think it's 5 or 6 molts.

5. Can anyone post on this thread a reliable picture guide on how to sex them accurately? Pictures of the underneath showing the pectines and the operculum for both male and female for comparison would be great.

-I sexed mine by the fullness of the pectines. So far it seems accurate.

6. Tips and advice in the event the scorpion needs to be removed from the enclosure. I have a pair of 12' tweezers but they don't have much grip on the tail of this species. They wiggle out of it very fervently. Currently, I use a cup to walk it over a lid in its enclosure.

-Push it into a cup with the tweezers, flip the cup with said tweezers. Carry cup with salad tongs. (Or if you aren't scared just do it like any other scorp)

7. How do we introduce a pair for the purpose of mating? How should we approach it? should we introduce the male into the female's enclosure or should we place them in bigger tank at the same time? What do we expect to see as indications of courtship behavior?

-I dropped 3 adults all together. They fought for a few minutes and then did fine for 6 months until I removed the femals cause I thought they were gravid. I didn't see any courtship.

8. What is the approximate gestation period?

-No idea, probably like 3 months?

9. Are free-reigning scorplings as deadly as the adults?

-Of course not but that doesn't mean you want to get stung. You can ask Eddy about that.


Hope this helps!

Much appreciated Andrew. Very thorough. I like the the bit about the salad thongs.

I would like the bring another question for the floor.

As you may have read. The concerns that have paused our breeding project have been based on the possibilities that spawned Deathstalker scorplings may escape find their way into places where they may pose a danger the randomly unfortunate.

Just out of curiosity, what are the chances for a desert species like Lieurus surviving in tropical, humid conditions. Could they possibly succumb to mycosis and die in an alien environment they can't adapt to before posing a threat to anyone.

This is by no means aimed at refuting or quelling Rafiq's obligation to abide by his parents wishes; merely to gauge or assess the ethical implications of breeding such a dangerous species in a region where it didn't occur naturally.

To be honest, I think the parents were being unnecessarily paranoid. Even the most average keeper is unlikely to accidentally let them escape or be stung if just a few basic precautions are taken.

The risk about scorpions escaping and establishing feral populations is incredibly low, even when the native and exotic habitats are both compatible for its survival (deathstalkers are NOT suited to Malaysia -- try imagining an Heterometrus sp. surviving in Egypt).

Scorpions are K-selected species, meaning that they have a slow generation time. You would have to have many escape, and it would take years for any population to begin to establish, assuming the founders survived long enough to breed (which would be all but impossible in that habitat).

As far as "breeding a species where it didn't occur naturally" goes, I feel that practice is the duty of responsible hobbyists everywhere.

Let's not discuss my parents, I have the rights to listen or refute wherever I see fit. In this case if its to be, it's because of what I personally believe in.

I'd expect to collect my girl this weekend if its okay with you alex.

I'm sorry Rafiq... I never meant for your parents to be discussed here this way. I consider you my friend; I accept and respect you the way you are however you choose to be therefore I respect your parents and their decisions.

I was just asking for the sake of understanding the implications of the above mentioned circumstances happening in Malaysia. I was just thinking aboiut the E. flavicaudus phenomenon and it made me consider that there is no way in declaring absolutism in any direction.

P.S. Your girl is yours to take home anytime you wish.