Care guide
Gold Sumbawa Centipede
Scolopendra sp. (Sumbawa locality, unconfirmed)
Likely a yellow/gold-legged locality form of the Scolopendra subspinipes complex from Sumbawa Island, Indonesia: this exact trade name isn't independently documented in hobbyist references, so treat the ID as provisional pending a supplier photo match, and apply full medically-significant precautions regardless.
Scolopendra sp. (Sumbawa locality, unconfirmed)
Identity confidence: provisional. This is a genus, group, or trade name rather than a confirmed species. Treat it as the closest match we can stand behind, and use the more conservative end of any range.
Gold Sumbawa Centipede: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: Likely a yellow/gold-legged locality form of the Scolopendra subspinipes complex from Sumbawa Island, Indonesia: this exact trade name isn't independently documented in hobbyist references, so treat the ID as provisional pending a supplier photo match, and apply full medically-significant precautions regardless.
Group: CentipedesDifficulty: Spice 5: Extreme (Medical Significance)Setup: Tropical burrowing/fossorial terrestrialHandling: NEVER
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 | 75-85°F day, not under 70°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Ambient 65-90%, cross-ventilated at substrate level; dry refuge zone |
| Setup Type | Tropical burrowing/fossorial terrestrial |
| Substrate | Deep (6 in+) packed coco fiber/soil blend |
| Feeding | Roaches/crickets, no longer than half the body |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 5: Extreme (Medical Significance) |
| Handling | NEVER |
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
- Baby Buddy for hatchlings
- Burrow Buddy juvenile grow-out
- Large custom terrestrial for adults
Warnings First
- The ID on this one is a guess. Locality is unconfirmed. Full S. subspinipes-complex precautions apply either way.
- Medically significant venom. Treat every bite as a medical event
- Extremely fast; tool-only handling always
- Solitary. Never cohab
- Whatever the exact locality turns out to be, the ventilation requirement does not change: cross ventilation low on two opposite walls, or a humid burrow goes stagnant and takes the animal with it.
Simple Care
- Deep packed substrate.
- Cross ventilation low on two opposite walls, at substrate level.
- Dry zone alongside the humid zone.
- Shallow water dish packed with pebbles so small instars cannot drown.
- Heavy lid security.
- Tongs/cup only.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Mirror standard Scolopendra subspinipes-complex care: 6 in or more of firmly packed, moisture-retentive substrate, with one end noticeably drier than the other.
- Because the exact locality ID is unconfirmed, don't over-promise a specific origin story in product copy until photo-matched.
- Set up cross ventilation at substrate level from day one. Vents low on two opposite walls move air sideways through the burrow layer, which is where a tropical Scolopendra actually spends its life. Venting only through the lid dries the surface while leaving saturated, motionless air sitting in the burrow, and that pocket is where fungal cuticle infection and mite blooms get started.
- Cover those low vents with fine stainless mesh bonded flush. An import of uncertain size and age is exactly the animal that finds the one gap you did not measure.
- Airflow and ambient humidity pull against each other. Hold the 65 to 90% band by keeping the lower substrate damp and running a water dish, and let the vents do their job. Closing vents to hold a humidity reading is the single most common way keepers cook an import that arrived healthy.
- Trust your hands over the hygrometer. A squeeze of substrate from the bottom third should hold together and release no free water, while the top inch is allowed to look dry. That gradient is the animal's real choice of microclimate.
- Keep a shallow water dish filled with pebbles or flat stones so the waterline sits below the rim. Freshly imported animals are often dehydrated and will drink, small instars cannot drown with the stones in place, and the dish quietly feeds humidity at floor level.
- Mist under the hide rather than over the whole box. That gives a dependable damp retreat under cover while the open substrate stays drier and the air keeps turning over.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Feeding: roaches or crickets no longer than half the body length, every 4-7 days for juveniles and every 10-14 days for adults.
- Growth: treat as standard subspinipes-complex growth and lifespan (roughly a year-plus to maturity, 5-10 year lifespan) pending confirmation.
- Maintenance: pull uneaten prey within a day; don't disturb a fresh molt.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: If genuinely Sumbawa-locality S. subspinipes-complex: Sumbawa Island, Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia (unconfirmed for this specific animal).
- Habitat translation: Same tropical forest-floor leaf-litter assumption as other subspinipes-complex members, pending confirmation.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Nobody in the hobby uses this trade name in print, so we are not going to pretend it means something. Until a photo match says otherwise, treat this animal as a standard S. subspinipes.
- We do not have a species name for this one and we are not making one up. It is an unconfirmed locality color form, and that is all we will claim.
- Sources: the full Big Z APA 7 reference list lives at References.
Scolopendra sp. (Sumbawa locality, unconfirmed)
Identity confidence: provisional. This is a genus, group, or trade name rather than a confirmed species. Treat it as the closest match we can stand behind, and use the more conservative end of any range.
Gold Sumbawa Centipede
Big Z's Quick Verdict: Likely a yellow/gold-legged locality form of the Scolopendra subspinipes complex from Sumbawa Island, Indonesia: this exact trade name isn't independently documented in hobbyist references, so treat the ID as provisional pending a supplier photo match, and apply full medically-significant precautions regardless.
Group: CentipedesDifficulty: Spice 5: Extreme (Medical Significance)Setup: Tropical burrowing/fossorial terrestrialHandling: NEVER
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 Care Snapshot
| Temp | 75-85°F day, not under 70°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Ambient 65-90%, cross-ventilated at substrate level; dry refuge zone |
| Setup | Tropical burrowing/fossorial terrestrial |
| Substrate | Deep (6 in+) packed coco fiber/soil blend |
| Feeding | Roaches/crickets, no longer than half the body |
| Handling | NEVER |
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%+
Recommended Big Z's Setup
- Baby Buddy for hatchlings/1st instars
- Burrow Buddy for juvenile-to-subadult
- Larger custom terrestrial for adults
Critical Notes
- The ID on this one is a guess. Locality is unconfirmed. Full S. subspinipes-complex precautions apply either way.
- Medically significant venom. Treat every bite as a medical event
- Extremely fast; tool-only handling always
- Solitary. Never cohab
- Whatever the exact locality turns out to be, the ventilation requirement does not change: cross ventilation low on two opposite walls, or a humid burrow goes stagnant and takes the animal with it.
Care Basics
- Deep packed substrate.
- Cross ventilation low on two opposite walls, at substrate level.
- Dry zone alongside the humid zone.
- Shallow water dish packed with pebbles so small instars cannot drown.
- Heavy lid security.
- Tongs/cup only.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Feeding: roaches or crickets no longer than half the body length, every 4-7 days for juveniles and every 10-14 days for adults.
- Growth: treat as standard subspinipes-complex growth and lifespan (roughly a year-plus to maturity, 5-10 year lifespan) pending confirmation.
- Maintenance: pull uneaten prey within a day; don't disturb a fresh molt.
Current Big Z's catalog: Yes
Scolopendra sp. (Sumbawa locality, unconfirmed)
Identity confidence: provisional. This is a genus, group, or trade name rather than a confirmed species. Treat it as the closest match we can stand behind, and use the more conservative end of any range.
Gold Sumbawa Centipede: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: Likely a yellow/gold-legged locality form of the Scolopendra subspinipes complex from Sumbawa Island, Indonesia: this exact trade name isn't independently documented in hobbyist references, so treat the ID as provisional pending a supplier photo match, and apply full medically-significant precautions regardless.
Group: CentipedesDifficulty: Spice 5: Extreme (Medical Significance)Setup: Tropical burrowing/fossorial terrestrialHandling: NEVER
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 | 75-85°F day, not under 70°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Ambient 65-90%, cross-ventilated at substrate level; dry refuge zone |
| Setup Type | Tropical burrowing/fossorial terrestrial |
| Substrate | Deep (6 in+) packed coco fiber/soil blend |
| Feeding | Roaches/crickets, no longer than half the body |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 5: Extreme (Medical Significance) |
| Handling | NEVER |
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
- Baby Buddy for hatchlings
- Burrow Buddy juvenile grow-out
- Large custom terrestrial for adults
Warnings First
- The ID on this one is a guess. Locality is unconfirmed. Full S. subspinipes-complex precautions apply either way.
- Medically significant venom. Treat every bite as a medical event
- Extremely fast; tool-only handling always
- Solitary. Never cohab
- Whatever the exact locality turns out to be, the ventilation requirement does not change: cross ventilation low on two opposite walls, or a humid burrow goes stagnant and takes the animal with it.
Simple Care
- Deep packed substrate.
- Cross ventilation low on two opposite walls, at substrate level.
- Dry zone alongside the humid zone.
- Shallow water dish packed with pebbles so small instars cannot drown.
- Heavy lid security.
- Tongs/cup only.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Mirror standard Scolopendra subspinipes-complex care: 6 in or more of firmly packed, moisture-retentive substrate, with one end noticeably drier than the other.
- Because the exact locality ID is unconfirmed, don't over-promise a specific origin story in product copy until photo-matched.
- Set up cross ventilation at substrate level from day one. Vents low on two opposite walls move air sideways through the burrow layer, which is where a tropical Scolopendra actually spends its life. Venting only through the lid dries the surface while leaving saturated, motionless air sitting in the burrow, and that pocket is where fungal cuticle infection and mite blooms get started.
- Cover those low vents with fine stainless mesh bonded flush. An import of uncertain size and age is exactly the animal that finds the one gap you did not measure.
- Airflow and ambient humidity pull against each other. Hold the 65 to 90% band by keeping the lower substrate damp and running a water dish, and let the vents do their job. Closing vents to hold a humidity reading is the single most common way keepers cook an import that arrived healthy.
- Trust your hands over the hygrometer. A squeeze of substrate from the bottom third should hold together and release no free water, while the top inch is allowed to look dry. That gradient is the animal's real choice of microclimate.
- Keep a shallow water dish filled with pebbles or flat stones so the waterline sits below the rim. Freshly imported animals are often dehydrated and will drink, small instars cannot drown with the stones in place, and the dish quietly feeds humidity at floor level.
- Mist under the hide rather than over the whole box. That gives a dependable damp retreat under cover while the open substrate stays drier and the air keeps turning over.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Feeding: roaches or crickets no longer than half the body length, every 4-7 days for juveniles and every 10-14 days for adults.
- Growth: treat as standard subspinipes-complex growth and lifespan (roughly a year-plus to maturity, 5-10 year lifespan) pending confirmation.
- Maintenance: pull uneaten prey within a day; don't disturb a fresh molt.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: If genuinely Sumbawa-locality S. subspinipes-complex: Sumbawa Island, Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia (unconfirmed for this specific animal).
- Habitat translation: Same tropical forest-floor leaf-litter assumption as other subspinipes-complex members, pending confirmation.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Nobody in the hobby uses this trade name in print, so we are not going to pretend it means something. Until a photo match says otherwise, treat this animal as a standard S. subspinipes.
- We do not have a species name for this one and we are not making one up. It is an unconfirmed locality color form, and that is all we will claim.
- Sources: the full Big Z APA 7 reference list lives at References.