Pandinurus exitialis
Gold Claw Scorpion: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: A large, strong-clawed scorpion from the savanna hills of Sudan and South Sudan. Give it deep packable substrate, a tight rock or cork retreat, a dry surface over a lightly damp lower layer, and no handling.
Group: ScorpionsDifficulty: Spice 3: IntermediateSetup: Hot semi-arid burrower, deep substrateHandling: No handling, strong claws
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Snapshot
| Temperature | 78-85°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | 50-65%, damp lower layer, dry surface |
| Setup Type | Hot semi-arid burrower, deep substrate |
| Substrate | Deep packable soil/sand, damp lower layer, dry top |
| Feeding | Adults every 1-2 weeks, young a little more often |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 3: Intermediate |
| Handling | No handling, strong claws |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Enclosure Format / Size Class
- 2i-3i instars: secure Baby Buddy, escape-proof vents, shallow pebble-filled dish
- Juveniles: Burrow Buddy grow-out, deep substrate, damp lower layer, dry top
- Adults: larger terrestrial setup, floor space, a real burrow start and a cork or rock crevice
Warnings First
- Strong claws. Do not handle it.
- Set heavy decor on the floor before adding substrate, so burrowing can't collapse it.
- Small instars drown in open dishes. Put pebbles or coarse grit in the water dish so they can climb out.
- Remove uneaten feeders, especially before a molt, and never feed a soft, freshly molted scorpion.
- A damp lower layer needs cross ventilation at substrate level. Sealed in, it goes stagnant and brings mold and mycosis.
- Avoid risky rehousing and constant checking. Let it settle into a stable burrow.
Simple Care
- Don't handle it, and avoid constant disturbance.
- Give deep, packable substrate and a tight rock or cork retreat.
- Vent low on two opposite walls so the damp lower layer stays healthy.
- Keep the lower substrate lightly moist and the top dry, never swampy.
- Hold 78-85°F.
- Keep water in a shallow dish packed with pebbles.
- Set heavy decor on the floor before the substrate goes in.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Use a deep, packable blend with a slightly moist lower layer and a drier surface. Retreats hold the humidity.
- It comes from hill and inselberg country, so a half-buried cork slab or a stack of flat rocks works as well as a dug burrow.
- Vent low on two opposite walls, at or just above the substrate line. Lid-only venting leaves the burrow damp and still, and that starts mycosis.
- Hold 50-65% with a lightly damp lower layer and a water dish, then let air move. Don't close vents to protect a humidity reading.
- Check by hand: lower-layer substrate just holds together when squeezed with no water released, surface dry. Mist under the cork or behind the rocks only.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Offer crickets or roaches up to body length, smaller for juveniles.
- Adults eat every 1-2 weeks, growing animals a little more often. Remove uneaten feeders, especially before a molt.
- Never feed a soft, freshly molted scorpion. It matures over several molts, then stops growing.
- Care info on this species is thinner than on the emperor. Log molts and feedings, and change conditions slowly, one at a time.
- Spot-clean boluses and feeder remains, and keep hydration measured.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: Sudan and South Sudan: hills of North Kordofan south of El Obeid, the Ingessana Hills, Boma National Park and Eastern Equatoria. Hot semi-arid savanna.
- Habitat translation: Hot, mostly dry savanna with hills and rock becomes a deep packable burrow plus a tight cork or rock crevice, with a drier surface over a slightly moist lower layer.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Keep hydration measured. Substrate that stays wet is more dangerous than brief, targeted moisture.
- Adults want terrestrial floor space plus a real burrow start, not just a hide.
- Family Scorpionidae. Long confused with Pandinus magrettii, and Pandinurus prendinii is now treated as the same species.
- A rarer animal: favor a settled burrow over rehousing or checking on it.