General

The Australian Desert Scorpion (Urodacus sp) has a very elongated, flattened body and powerful pedipalps. The body shape is adapted to living in the rock crevices and sandy soils of the arid and semi-arid areas of Australia. Desert Scopions are relatively easy to keep as long as the enclosure temperature and humidity is maintained (temperatures 20 to 30??C). Captive birth is quite common but it would appear that in these cases, most females are gravid when caught. Males are less common than females so most kept are females. Average litter size would appear to be approx. 15. Survival rate appears to be excellent as most people report minimal if any cannibalism. A number of people have reported young staying close to, and inter-reacting with the mother for up to two months. Moult to 2nd Instar is approx 16 days.

Venom

While the stings of Australian scorpions are not regarded as fatal to humans, care should be taken to avoid being stung in case of a severe reaction. Generally if stung, their venom causes pain and swelling that can last up to 12 hours.

IT IS NOT ADVISABLE TO HANDLE THE SCORPION WITH YOUR HANDS, IT WILL STRESS THE SCORPION, AND YOU MAY SUFFER A PAINFUL BITE AND/OR STING.

Feeding

Mealworms are the food of choice. Crickets are an ideal source of protein, however can be a danger to your scorpion as they can bite through this species' soft body - crickets that aren't eaten quickly should be removed from the enclosure. The higher the temperature and humidity, the more food is required. A scorpion may gorge itself (to the point you can see the scorpion???s body swell) and then go into hiding to digest the meal, if the conditions are correct. It then may come out after a few days, a week or even months for its next meal. Healthy adult males often have long fasts. They will eat food up to 1/3 of their body length. Anything larger than this is undesirable. Avoid feeding ants and cockroaches, as they are not a clean food, and may have traces of insecticide.

Substrate & Housing

They are solitary animals and should be housed in separate tanks with a layer of partially damp, sandy soil on the bottom. A shallow water dish should be used as the scorpion may drown if too deep. You can place gravel along the bottom of the water dish to make it shallower while still allowing access to the water in-between the rocks. Adding a small sponge (such as a hermit crab sponge) into the water dish also aids your scorpion by providing it with a wet surface to stand on and drink from. Correct substrate and provision of rock crevices will also increase the life span. Fish tanks with close fitting lids are ideal habitats. Be careful, scorpions can climb and may climb out if you put anything up the side of the tank.