Centruroides vittatus communal?

I would like to get some communal scorpions in a 10 gallon, maybe like 5 of them(males and females). I don't really have a secure top, but I doubt scorps would climb glass, and I could keep the substrate to a minimum, and keep the bark/wood lower.
I have been doing some research, and Centruroides vittatus seem to be the best choice. Some people have also recommended Centruroides hentzi, and Babycurus jacksoni as being the best communals though... I was originally going to keep some Uroctonus mordax communally, but 'Mr. Mordax'(Mike) advised not to in my previous thread.
What do you guys think about the best communal scorpion? And, is it true that you must buy them as adults, as they will likely cannibalize their tankmates after and/or during molts? How long is the average lifespan of a C. vittatus any way?
Thanks.

All centruroides sp do pretty well at all stages. B.jacksoni might canabalize during molts but it's not too common. I used to love keeping c.vittatus because they actually share hides. Lq's can be communal as adults too

Thanks. I don't really like the idea of communal Leirus quinquestriatus though...
What substrate would be ultimate best? Sand, or Coco fiber?

I have a communal setup with 5 C. vits in a 10 gallon tank. I use stacked cork bark as a hide with an under tank heat mat. I have a stack on the warm side and another on the cool side. They don't burrow at all and they love to pile up together on the bark over the heat mat. I use a 50/50 mix of coco fiber and sand. They do very well communally. They also can't climb glass.

I have a bunch of babies in a separate tank and will put some of them in the main tank when they grow a bit. I think you could put 10 to 20 C. vits in a 10 gallon tank with no problem.

Thank you for the info. So, the babies don't cannibalize each other, right?
I think if I get the kind that is from deserts, I'll keep them in sand, and coco fiber for the forest ones of the more humid places. But does it really make a difference? Can't I just mist more frequently if it keep a scorp from the humid areas in sand?

Usually the slings won't cannibalize but they might

I think it's best to try to keep scorps on a substrate that resembles their natural habitat. I think around a 50/50 mix of sand and coco does that for C. vits. If you just use sand it dries out fast between mistings and gets really hard when it dries.

I have a brood of mostly 3rd instar C. vits living in a large (3.0 gallon) Critter Keeper with plenty of stacked cork bark. I have not seem them eating each other.

I'm just going to try coco fiber, as I don't have any sand, and it would look better with the bark.

I think coco would work fine.

went out into the forest and found some flat maple tree bark that I'm going to use as decor and hides. This is gonna be great!

You can keep Centruroides vittatus, and Centruroides sculpturatus together, correct?
If not, what would be the best other species of Centruroides to be able to keep with them? I would like 5 C. vittatus, and maybe like 2 of some other kind.

I don't think it would work well to keep two different species of communal scorps together. I would set up different enclosures for each.

When using anything from the outside it might be a good idea to bake it in the oven at a low temp to kill any unwanted pests. Maybe 225 degrees F. for 30 min. I'll defer to some of the others here on both points though.

I've done that, but what I do is microwave them for 3 minutes. I don't think I'll do that this tine, they have been on the fire all night, and I've washed them with hot water. I will put then in the freezer though.

So I now have 8 Centruroides vittatus in a communal environment.
pics: https://scorpionforum.darkbb.com/t9239-victor-s-pandinus-imperator-uroctonus-mordax-centruroides-vittatus

I had some questions about their different morphs.
Do their morphs have to do with location? Or does this happen naturally?
I know there is pantheriensis morph, chisosarius morph, and mesic/xeric for the regular vittatus.
Mesic is scorpions from humid, and xeric from dryer.
If I somehow acquired(I'd like to) all these different morphs, how would they do all together? What about mating? If a mesic bred with a xeric, or a pantheriensis bred with a chisosarius? How would the offspring turn out?
http://wrbu.si.edu/scorpions/sc_du_jour/c_vittatus.html

THANKS!!!

Cool setup! Make sure they have something they can hang upside down from for proper molting. I like to stack bark (I use cork bark). They love to hide under the bark in the stack. I'll place two or three pieces of bark one on top of the other.

Unfortunately I'm not familiar with the morphs. Maybe someone else can chime in.

Seems like everything's pretty much been covered, but I'll thrown in my two cents.

VictorHernandez wrote:

I would like to get some communal scorpions in a 10 gallon, maybe like 5 of them(males and females). I don't really have a secure top, but I doubt scorps would climb glass, and I could keep the substrate to a minimum, and keep the bark/wood lower.

You MUST get a secure top.

True, they can't climb glass, but they can climb the silicon that holds the sides together.

Either invest in a good top or make your own.

VictorHernandez wrote:

And, is it true that you must buy them as adults, as they will likely cannibalize their tankmates after and/or during molts? How long is the average lifespan of a C. vittatus any way?
Thanks.

All scorpions are communal. . .until they are not.

Some people may keep scorpions for years and not suffer any losses to cannibalism.

I used to have a pair of C. gracilis, then one day one decided to eat the other after a molt.

So my suggestion is to keep a close eye on them around molts.

Average lifespan's about 3-5 years.

VictorHernandez wrote:

Thanks. I don't really like the idea of communal Leirus quinquestriatus though...

Eddy's correct on this, LQ's can be kept communally as adults, Cornell had a setup a couple years ago. (Not sure if they still do.)

VictorHernandez wrote:

You can keep Centruroides vittatus, and Centruroides sculpturatus together, correct?
If not, what would be the best other species of Centruroides to be able to keep with them? I would like 5 C. vittatus, and maybe like 2 of some other kind.

No.

Eventually you'll end up with only one species.


As for the different morphs, I'm not sure what would happen if you bred them, etc.

So far I have not had any cannibalism problems with this breed.

robert44 wrote:

Cool setup! Make sure they have something they can hang upside down from for proper molting. I like to stack bark (I use cork bark). They love to hide under the bark in the stack. I'll place two or three pieces of bark one on top of the other.

Unfortunately I'm not familiar with the morphs. Maybe someone else can chime in.

Alright thanks. And I have pieces of wood in there where they can hang however they want, and multiple pieces of barks, some even stacked, where they hide upside down on.

Scorpion19981000 wrote:

Seems like everything's pretty much been covered, but I'll thrown in my two cents.

VictorHernandez wrote:

I would like to get some communal scorpions in a 10 gallon, maybe like 5 of them(males and females). I don't really have a secure top, but I doubt scorps would climb glass, and I could keep the substrate to a minimum, and keep the bark/wood lower.

You MUST get a secure top.

True, they can't climb glass, but they can climb the silicon that holds the sides together.

Either invest in a good top or make your own.

VictorHernandez wrote:

And, is it true that you must buy them as adults, as they will likely cannibalize their tankmates after and/or during molts? How long is the average lifespan of a C. vittatus any way?
Thanks.

All scorpions are communal. . .until they are not.

Some people may keep scorpions for years and not suffer any losses to cannibalism.

I used to have a pair of C. gracilis, then one day one decided to eat the other after a molt.

So my suggestion is to keep a close eye on them around molts.

Average lifespan's about 3-5 years.

VictorHernandez wrote:

Thanks. I don't really like the idea of communal Leirus quinquestriatus though...

Eddy's correct on this, LQ's can be kept communally as adults, Cornell had a setup a couple years ago. (Not sure if they still do.)

VictorHernandez wrote:

You can keep Centruroides vittatus, and Centruroides sculpturatus together, correct?
If not, what would be the best other species of Centruroides to be able to keep with them? I would like 5 C. vittatus, and maybe like 2 of some other kind.

No.

Eventually you'll end up with only one species.


As for the different morphs, I'm not sure what would happen if you bred them, etc.

Thanks.
I bought one of them pet select tops from walmart and it fits good. I'm still going to put wads of vaseline on the silicone sides.