Elo,
around 6 weeks ago I received some very poor quality stock from a supplier here in the UK. One of the poor souls I received was a juvenile unidentified species, possibly Heteroscorpion or Opisthacanthus sp. The 1.5 cm scorpion was caked in
mites and extremely thin. It was my first time dealing with 'bad
mites' and, with my lack of experience of dealing with this problem and because the scorpion was so small, I had little hope that it would survive.
I decide against trying the vaseline method. The scorpion was so small I didn't want to risk choking it in crap. Instead I have kept it hot, daytime temps around 30c, and as dry as I could without dessicating the scorpion.
Well, 6 weeks down the line it seems to be working well :-)
Here is a before pic
And a pic taken today
As you can see when I received the scorpion the
mites were everywhere. All over the mouth area, pedipalp joints and most joints on the first 3 pairs of legs. The scorpion was also very thin.
Now the infestation has clearly diminished. There are a few stragglers hanging on but the majority have died off. The scorpion is also eating well and definately appears to be fatter. Hopefully over the next few weeks they will completely disappear.
Does anybody know anything about the life cycle of 'bad'
mites? Do they breed and lay eggs on the host or do they drop off the host and lay eggs in the substrate? I'm just wondering as to whether regular substrate changes would help if they do lay their eggs in it?
Anyway, I'm pretty pleased with the result. I know I'm not in the all clear yet but it's definately heading in the right direction.