V/H. Spinigerus unexpected brood

Hi all. I came back from work yesterday to find my V/H. Spinigerus giving birth. The scorplings were underneath her at first and started climbing up onto her back. You can make it out in the first pics, was hard to get without disturbing her or using the flash. Still trying to get used to this new camera




This was unexpected because I didn't notice she was gravid. This is her now with a rough guess of 20 scorplings on her back. Theres a few wandering about the tank on their own aswell, take it they wont survive. She also appears to be munching one aswell. Should I feed her up to stop this happening anymore?



My problem is this couldn't have come at a worst time. I'm due to go on holiday for a week on friday. My sister was going to drop the odd cricket in but obviously I can't monitor them myself. I read in another thread they take about a week to reach 2i. Luckily the tank is alot bigger than was needed and quite densely filled so they should have a good chance when they do come off. But they're going to need food right? Bit stuck on what to do and yes i'v considered taking them with me! lol but not practical.

Any advice appreciated, thank you

What about flightless fruit flies?

They come in a clear tub with tiny holes in it so that they will escape and start to wander around the tank.
The scorps can then get them as all they do is walk around because they can't fly.

hmm very good idea mate, thanks. I'v not seen them before, any ideas where I could get some before friday? There is a really good reptile shop a little way away from me called Cold Blooded that i'm sure would have them. You recon these will be small enough for the scorplings?

I thought about leaving some pin heads in there with abit of food for them. Or some small killed crickets but they will probably go mouldy.

yeah dude theyll be big enough...
a friend of mine uses fruit flies to feed his juvenile poison dart frogs...

plus theyre literally around this size * so theyre perfect for small slings like that

Yep, they're just like pinhead size basically.

ok cheers guys, but i'm having some trouble finding some before friday none of the reptile shops nearby have any. Do you think pin heads will work? If I left some food for them and put them in right before i leave friday.

Really gutted they have come at this time. How long could they survive once they come off mums back without getting food? Going by other threads they will come off a few days before i get back.

To update, shes been eating and the babies seem more organised on her back in little rows.

Right i've just stepped in the door from holiday after driving over 300 miles to find baby scorps all over the place! From what I can see at a glance with the black light there's a few babies roaming the tank, a couple hid up and mums in her burrow.

Any advice on what to do now? I'm searching posts atm but thought i'd ask as it may be urgent. Should I wait till it gets dark so mums comes out then get her out first or start catching the babies? Also they are so tiny i'm not sure how to pick them up without damaging them.

Thanks, Jamie

Well I've got them all out and into seperate tubs. Theres not as many as there was on her back I recon some more got munched, didnt help I ended up going away for 10 days. I'll get some pics up soon

how many are there altogether?

Well I had only caught 5 last night but I spotted 2 more this morning so only 7 so far. There may be more yet. I havn't actually searched the tank just catching them as I see them theres alot of hiding places and cracks in wood and such.

wow thats a drastic drop from the estimated 20
=/
good luck

Thanks I need it! Gutted this came at the wrong time, feel like if I could have been here to monitor them there would be more left.

Found another 2 this morning. Do you think I should break the tank down and search for them? Bit worried about pulling the drift wood out of the compacted sand if there could be babies left in and around it.

that is completely up to you...
i would, but im just impetuous lol...

you could try it and move everything real slowly to make sure you dont harm anything.

Ok thanks for the help mate. Going to go with you and carefully break the tank down later tonight because this morning I spotted another 1 with the black light but it shot into a crack in the wood before I could catch it. Just got to get an aggressive mum out now lol

G'luck and Congrats! It's a shame to have potentially lost some but it is part of the natural course. I hope you find some more though too!

Thanks iitomodachi, yeah I suppose these things happen. I'm just happy I got some babies out of this. I managed to find a couple more making the total number 12. I'lll get some pics up as soon as i can they're just too damn small to get a decent pic of. They all killed their first alive cricket last night.

So give me some insight here Bro? How is is your brood coming? Did the flightless fruit flies work, or did you chop up some crickets or roaches? Also what did you do for water? Hope you don't mind me picking your brain?

Course not mate I think we're all here to learn. As you know this brood was hard for me, it was my first one and I had to go away for 10 days so I didnt get to monitor them properly. By the time I got home they were all off the mums back and a fair few had been munched.

So I recon yours will come off the back in a week to 10 days. You better get a serious amount of little tubs set up! I saw someone use like a fishing tackle box with loads of seperate compartments, could be handy.

I couldn't get hold of any flightless fruit flies but did get some true pin head crix. I fed headsquished ones first and they didnt have any trouble finding them. Then after a few days they were able to kill one. These are tiny crickets though. I think the cut up crix should be fine if you can't get pinheads or fruit flies.

For water i'v been putting the tinyest little spray in a corner of the tubs and the scorplings have actually been coming up to the edge and drinking from it. Once a week I suppose.

They seem to be doing well enough, i'v lost a couple of the smaller ones and theres a few that stand out as bigger than the rest. I'll get some pics up soon

Thanks Bro,
Yeah, I think I have about 45 baby food jars left, drilling the lids out sucks though! I will get on that otherwise it is possibly condiment containers from the deli or something. I think I can get ready within a few days so I should be good :/
I tried 1/2 a cricket for the baby H Trilineatus's today, we'll see how they do. Thanks for the insight! And as for learning, you are correct, and this is a crash course at that! At least I know for them to mate I'm doing something right!
Thanks

No worries, wish I could say more but i'm still new and this is as much of a crash course for me as it is for you. Yea I think you'll do fine you obviously do your research. The Hottentotta babies are lovely just makes me jelous I can't have any though lol

Goodluck!

Thanks, I try to do the research, just want to ensure the maximum number make it out a live. If something happens in the natural course of things, not much I can do but I definitely don't want anything dying because of something that I did.

Aside from buying scorplings and spiderlings this is my first experience with new arrivals so it is definitely a crash course and very interesting. I'm wondering if all scorplings look so darn beautiful though. These H.Trilineatus look super colorful and have some other markings adults don't. I have noticed this with pictures others post of their broods too and the babies are amazing looking. I'm just so amazed by the little guys!

So does the law in the UK ban anything that is of medical significance or just certain known species and families?

This is a link to the DWA list

DWA List

basically not allowed any of the buthidae family (which is a hell of a lot) and The species Hemiscorpius lepturus

Yeah, unfortunately that takes care of 1/2 of all scorps Still a lot of cool species available though. I'm assuming they are pretty strict about this huh? It's not like buying a baby constrictor that gets up to 10+ feet here where they are legal as babies but once they reach 3-6 feet depending on where you live they are illegal? I know there are a lot of people that do that and it is hard to track that sort of thing down unless someone reports you. Not that I condone anything like this, I am just curious and asking theoretically.

If any of you guys in the UK are bummin' over this, whatever I have that you cannot I'd be happy to stream some live video or something to help compensate Lol, will have to post some vids on youtube or something anyways

Well we tried getting some Chinese swimming scorpions and got knocked back due to lack of licence live streaming would be cool we put web cam on ours so we can watch from the bedroom lol ...

It's so unfair I really like a lot of the scorpions we can't have would kill for some b.jacksoni or lychas mucronatus get jealous when I see you guys with all ones we arent allowed and all the scorplings too lol might have to move to Usa

our collection is growing though next on the list is swammerdami, desert hairy and carboctonus keyseringi.... And last night we went and caught some of our own from the only uk colony of scorpions which was amazing!!

Yeah stream some videos of the P. Trans when they come and i'll be happy! haha
Seriously though the DWA dosn't bother me too much, we can still get alot of cool species and probably some that people in the US struggle to find. But yeah a hell of alot of scorps are Buthids.

I think it's certain species that the babies have brighter colour and markings because at the mo I have baby H. Paucidens, H. Madras, V. Spins and they seem if anything less colourful than the adults.

You've nearly overtook me Bex! I think a Haddy will suit you well as you have more humid types. I went in Scales and Fangs yesterday and they said they got some in but sold them before even unpacking them! Quite sought after at the min I think. I havn't seen my Caraboctonus Keyserlingi since it made a burrow in its new tank.

Finally sorted some pics of the babies


Not sure if you can make it out but this one was walking around with a cricket nearly as big as him in his mouth lol


This is one drinking from the few drops i put on the edge


Mum now, she actually looks fatter now than when she was gravid