Scientific classification:
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Arachnida
Order:
Scorpiones
Family:
Buthidae
Genus:
Parabuthus
Species:
P. transvaalicus
Binomial name:
Parabuthus transvaalicus
discovered by:
Purcell, 1899
Common names:
black spitting thicktail scorpion, South African fattail scorpion, South African giant fat tail and South African spitting scorpion
Distribution:
Africa (Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, Zimbabwe).
Habitat:
in the wild they live in a hot and dry deserts and scrublands, but also in semi-arid regions. This species hide in burrows, under stones, logs etc.
Venom:
These have potent venom of a 3 out of 5. They are capable of producing large quantity of venom so therefore are considered a potentially dangerous species. Be careful if you decide to keep these.
Medical data indicate that this species has a strong venom and is medical significant. In a study in Zimbabwe, 63 % of the stings of this species resulted in intense pain only. 27 % of the stings resulted in minor systematic envenomation (hypersalivation, sweating and subjective neurological complaints). Severe scorpionism was seen in 10 % of the cases (neuromuscular symptoms with significant parasympathetic nervous system and cardiac involvment). Fatality rate was 0.3 % with deaths in children below 10 years and adults above 50 years. The cadiac involvment in P. transvaalicus envenomations differ from general buthid scorpionisms. Use of species specific antivenom seem to have a positive therapeutic effect.
LD 50 value for this species is reported to be 4.25 mg/kg. Due to it size, this scorpion can inject very large amounts of venom. NB! This species is able to squirt venom up to one meter away, and venom in the eyes can be very dangerous. Safty glasses is reccomended when dealing with this species.(but there's no record that they really spit nor squirt venom in captivity)
Housing my sinisters:
kept this dude in a 6"x6"x6" screen topped glass enclosure with more or less 2" thick dry sand mixed with cocopeat as my substrate. And also provide em with a rock for its hide.
Feeding:
i feed my p.trans with a gut load crickets, a cricket fed with hi-protein dry foods,fruits and greens nd vitamins.feed em 6 or more crickets a week but depends..(effective coz mas dako cla kaisa normal size)
Growth:
the normal growth is medium but mine is a slow grower, so as my other scorpions might be because of the food i gave em.
Sexing:
i dont really know how to sex my parabuthus coz i dont have an internet to do such research, so the most accurate way of sexing this dude is to consult firestarter.(hehe)
Temperament and behaviour:
Very docile except when stressed(almost got stung),
very sensitive with movements or vibrations,
very buzy digging burrows,
eats like a pig
