For beginners, the most universally recommended species to keep as a pet is the Emperor scorpion, Pandinus imperator. It is fairly docile and its sting is said to be roughly the same as a bee or wasp sting (although serious anaphylactic reactions can occur). For other species, the sting can range from relatively harmless to very painful or even potentially lethal. Here is a brief summary of characteristics of some species available as pets.
Pandinus sp.
- Pandinus imperator - Emperor - large, fairly docile, and good for beginners
- Pandinus cavimanus (Tanzanian Redclaw) - smaller than emperors and can be more aggressive so not as suitable as emperors, but okay for beginners
- these are rain forest species that are easy to obtain and care for
- Heterometrus spinifer - Thai Black
- Heterometrus javanensis - Javanese Jungle Scorpion
- large rain forest species, but tend to be a little harder to obtain
- fairly benign stings (like wasp), okay for beginners
- both species are said to be easy to keep in groups, and worth the cost
- Hadrurus hirsutus
- Hadrurus arizonensis
- desert species
- painful sting
- fairly aggressive
- not for beginners
- more aggressive
- painful sting
- not for beginners
- Androctonus sp. - potentially lethal
- Vaejovis sp. - very painful
- Centuroides sp. - potentially lethal.
- also - Scorpio maurus - fairly dangerous itself, but sometimes young Androctonus australis (highly venomous - potentially lethal) are mistakenly identified and sold as S. maurus. Beginners should avoid both!
More Resources
- Emperor Scorpions - keeping emperor scorpions as pets.
- Scorpion Anatomy - a basic guide to scorpion anatomy, primarily the parts to avoid!
- Insects, Spiders and More - scorpions, spiders, insects, and millipedes.