A very easy and prolific species to keep in captivity. I've been keeping a colony of these since around 2007. I'm actually preparing several manuscripts regarding various life history aspects of this species that will be published in the first part of 2010.
Like their close cousin Tityus (Tityus) serrulatus Lutz & Mello, 1922 (Buthidae), Tityus (Tityus) stigmurus (Thorell, 1876) are synanthropic and in northeastern Brazil, there is virtually no disturbed habitat unexploited by this species including houses and other manmade structures.
While this species is responsible for hundreds of envenomations each year, the majority of envenomations produce only localized symptoms similar to those produced by species such as Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821). However, there have been two confirmed fatalities attributed to this species and a small number of moderate to severe systemic reactions to the venom of T. stigmurus. The FACT is that fatalities attributed to Tityus spp. are rare.
For a single specimen, any glass/plastic container at least 5" x 5" x 5" works well. Like many other Tityus spp. T. stigmurus prefers vertical and sub-vertical structure, tubular or curved structures (cork bark) on the substrate, etc. They do not burrow but will adopt burrows, cracks, fissures, and recesses in the ground and under surface cover. Immature stages (instars) also prefer to molt above the ground and females prefer to parturate upside down on the "ceilings" of structure.
Substrate: Doesn't matter as in northeastern Brazil, substrata can range from dark rich soils to sand. It is a fallacy that all Tityus spp. prefer moist substrate - many simply prefer moderate to moderately-high ambient humidity levels of 65-80% (RH). However, as providing RH in captivity (inexpensively) a moistened (just to the touch) 2-3" layer of dark topsoil (or, dirt from the backyard) works just fine for most Tityus spp. You do not need to saturate the soil - just keep it moist to the touch. If you do need to provide additional moisture simply add a small water bowl (1.5-2 oz. portion cup). Fill half the water bowl with gravel to prevent any accidental drownings or the scorpion from tipping over the water bowl.
Structure: If it's an adult specimen you need only supply an appropriately-sized piece of cork bark; placed horizontally on the substrate. Make sure that there's at least a 1"-2" gap under the bark for the scorpion. As it will be a female (thelytokous parthenogenesis), prepare for the eventual 3-4 litters per year for 2-3 years. If conditions are optimal, T. stigmurus females will mature after five molts (sixth-instar) and produce their initial F1 generation in 93-150 days BUT this can take up to 205 days (pers. obs.). After the first litter, females will produce a new litter approximately every 30-45 days. The majority will produce 3 litters per year for 2-3 years. While a recently published paper indicated an average litter size of 6-16 (Aguiar et al. 2008), for the majority of specimens average litter size is closer to 12-25 *IF* conditions are near- or at optimum.
Tityus stigmurus prefer to deliver their young while suspended upside down under structure where the female forms a birth basket with legs I or II or both. The young are extruded onto her venter where they remain for a variable amount of time before descending to the dorsum of the female. Enough of that!
Environmental conditions: Optimal growth and development occurs at temperatures in the range of 78-85 F, with 80-82 F probably being close to optimal for this species. Like T. serrulatus, they are tolerant of a broad-range of temperatures from 70-90 F. Provide adequate airflow! Lack of adequate airflow can cause high mortality rates in some Tityus spp., especially during the developmental period.
Prey: they will devour anything they can capture but cannibalism is very rare in this species.
Behaviors: I'll not bore you with a long diatribe regarding the behaviors of T. stigmurus except to say that this species is highly unpredictable and while its typical defensive posture is the metasoma flexed dorsomedially and directed forward (typically defensive posture for the majority of scorpions), they are quite capable of rapidly redirecting it laterally or quickly extending the metasoma rearward! They are deceptively slow and deliberate in their typical movements but can move rapidly when necessary. They cannot leap or jump but will drop from higher to lower structures without any adverse effects.
Care sheet by:
Lucian K. Ross
Like their close cousin Tityus (Tityus) serrulatus Lutz & Mello, 1922 (Buthidae), Tityus (Tityus) stigmurus (Thorell, 1876) are synanthropic and in northeastern Brazil, there is virtually no disturbed habitat unexploited by this species including houses and other manmade structures.
While this species is responsible for hundreds of envenomations each year, the majority of envenomations produce only localized symptoms similar to those produced by species such as Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821). However, there have been two confirmed fatalities attributed to this species and a small number of moderate to severe systemic reactions to the venom of T. stigmurus. The FACT is that fatalities attributed to Tityus spp. are rare.
For a single specimen, any glass/plastic container at least 5" x 5" x 5" works well. Like many other Tityus spp. T. stigmurus prefers vertical and sub-vertical structure, tubular or curved structures (cork bark) on the substrate, etc. They do not burrow but will adopt burrows, cracks, fissures, and recesses in the ground and under surface cover. Immature stages (instars) also prefer to molt above the ground and females prefer to parturate upside down on the "ceilings" of structure.
Substrate: Doesn't matter as in northeastern Brazil, substrata can range from dark rich soils to sand. It is a fallacy that all Tityus spp. prefer moist substrate - many simply prefer moderate to moderately-high ambient humidity levels of 65-80% (RH). However, as providing RH in captivity (inexpensively) a moistened (just to the touch) 2-3" layer of dark topsoil (or, dirt from the backyard) works just fine for most Tityus spp. You do not need to saturate the soil - just keep it moist to the touch. If you do need to provide additional moisture simply add a small water bowl (1.5-2 oz. portion cup). Fill half the water bowl with gravel to prevent any accidental drownings or the scorpion from tipping over the water bowl.
Structure: If it's an adult specimen you need only supply an appropriately-sized piece of cork bark; placed horizontally on the substrate. Make sure that there's at least a 1"-2" gap under the bark for the scorpion. As it will be a female (thelytokous parthenogenesis), prepare for the eventual 3-4 litters per year for 2-3 years. If conditions are optimal, T. stigmurus females will mature after five molts (sixth-instar) and produce their initial F1 generation in 93-150 days BUT this can take up to 205 days (pers. obs.). After the first litter, females will produce a new litter approximately every 30-45 days. The majority will produce 3 litters per year for 2-3 years. While a recently published paper indicated an average litter size of 6-16 (Aguiar et al. 2008), for the majority of specimens average litter size is closer to 12-25 *IF* conditions are near- or at optimum.
Tityus stigmurus prefer to deliver their young while suspended upside down under structure where the female forms a birth basket with legs I or II or both. The young are extruded onto her venter where they remain for a variable amount of time before descending to the dorsum of the female. Enough of that!
Environmental conditions: Optimal growth and development occurs at temperatures in the range of 78-85 F, with 80-82 F probably being close to optimal for this species. Like T. serrulatus, they are tolerant of a broad-range of temperatures from 70-90 F. Provide adequate airflow! Lack of adequate airflow can cause high mortality rates in some Tityus spp., especially during the developmental period.
Prey: they will devour anything they can capture but cannibalism is very rare in this species.
Behaviors: I'll not bore you with a long diatribe regarding the behaviors of T. stigmurus except to say that this species is highly unpredictable and while its typical defensive posture is the metasoma flexed dorsomedially and directed forward (typically defensive posture for the majority of scorpions), they are quite capable of rapidly redirecting it laterally or quickly extending the metasoma rearward! They are deceptively slow and deliberate in their typical movements but can move rapidly when necessary. They cannot leap or jump but will drop from higher to lower structures without any adverse effects.
Care sheet by:
Lucian K. Ross
