# scorpio maurus palmatus



## luke0227 (May 18, 2010)

Hi i recived my first isreali gold 2day and have read every care sheet i can find and they all seem pretty simple and basic just after any extra tips on substrate, longeivity from any one hu has experience with this species as im looking on eventualy setting up a communial enclosure once iv got my experience up with this species, thanks 
luke


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## lil lizzie (Apr 27, 2009)

hi luke , did you get this of martin french (bugz uk) i really want one ?


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## luke0227 (May 18, 2010)

lil lizzie said:


> hi luke , did you get this of martin french (bugz uk) i really want one ?


Yh i got it this morning an looks in great condition its already drank and is now folowing a cricket around, have u had one b4?


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## callum b (Sep 8, 2008)

Waaay congrats on your new scorp. I love S. maurus. I would keep it on a deep sand and coco fibre/soil mix that ideally has been wet and then dried out fully to allow for burrows to be created (the wetting and then drying helps the substrate stick together better and so decreases the chance of a collapse). I have never used this but a sand/soil substrate mixed with excavator clay is also supposed to be really good for burrowing scorps. 
As for the communal idea I personally wouldnt recommend it. Scorpio maurus are known for living very close to each other in colonys in the wild but don't tend to actually share burrows or hides like say an Emperor would. From my experience S. maurus are cannabalistic when kept in close proximity to each other. A while ago I made the mistake of putting some together after reading a care sheet saying they were a communal species and ended up with one fat S. maurus lol. If you were dead set on setting up a communal setup i'd go for as big a tank as possible to allow for plenty of space between burrow entrances and so avoid regular contact. I know this has worked for someone on another forum. This is also something I really want to have a go at when I can find some spare cash lol.

I have found them relatively short lived in captivity and have also heard this from other keepers I have spoken to. 2 years seems to be the max for most. Whether they are just naturally short lived or that the specimens collected are old I don't know. I know that getting the natural microclimate conditions correct in captivity is difficult. In the wild they can burrow over a metre and so humdity at the bottom of the burrows can be 60%+ when at the surface it is very low. Replicating this in captivity is probably the key to keeping this species alive longer and allow more successful breeding and rearing of S. maurus juveniles. The closest you can get to this bar having a metre of substrate lol is to spray one corner and under one hide lightly once per week which I would recommend.
Anyways hope thats some help and good luck with your new scorp.


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## luke0227 (May 18, 2010)

Cheers for the tips mate, think i myt drop the communial enclosure and jus try an get it rigjt for one well for now anyway. Im just waiting to recieve some excavator clay so i can make a gyd burrowing substrate. I kinda got an idea for creating a fairly decebt humidity in the burrow by using the same technique as for tropical scorpions by puting a lauer of fine gravel bout an inch deep atvthe botom ov the tank and havung a a small amount ov water in it with the burrowing substrte on top iv the gravel so it dosent meet the wayer butvthe evaporated water will lightly dampen the bottom of the substrate...maybe lol case of trial and error i think. Thanks agen


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## callum b (Sep 8, 2008)

No worries man. Yer I have been thinking about giving the false bottom idea a go with desert species to try and replicate the humidity in burrows. The only thing is trying to keep the humidity lower than 60%. Anything above that and theres probably going to be a high risk of mycosis. Definately could be worth a play around with to see if you can acheive it though. Let me know how you get on.


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