Scorpions (Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals) [Paperback]

Manny Rubio (Author)

Book Description

Series: Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals | Publication Date: January 1, 2000

This handsomely illustrated book offers a wealth of information on scorpion purchase, housing, and general care, as well as information on the many varieties that are popular among hobbyists. Books in the Complete Pet Owner's Manuals series present basic information about pets for new or soon-to-be owners, as well as detailed information for other animal hobbyists. Advice and instruction covers purchase, equipment, general care and maintenance, and much more. Texts emphasize the basics and are easy for all readers to understand, but most titles in this series also present facts that even experienced owners and hobbyists will find new and useful. All books in this series are filled with high quality full-color photos and instructive line drawings.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

(back cover)
Information and advice to help you take good care of Scorpions

Typical Scorpions: their origins, anatomy, life cycle, and more

Expert advice: feeding, breeding, and housing

Understanding Scorpions: their needs and natural habitats

Step-by-step directions for everyday care

Informative and attractive illustrations and sidebars

Helpful table with all you need to know about their species

(picture caption)
These distant cousins of spiders make fascinating additions to your terrarium. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Barron's Educational Series; 1st ed edition (January 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764112244
• ISBN-13: 978-0764112249
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,259,903 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good book for the beginning arachnoculturist, March 19, 2000

By 

Brent E. Hendrixson "chalcodes" (Greenville, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scorpions (Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals) (Paperback)

Rubio's book is one of the few focused on the captive husbandry of scorpions -- he gives great information on breeding, housing, and raising these magnificent animals. In addition, his photos are of excellent quality, surpassed by no other that I have seen published in similar books!

There were a few drawbacks though -- some of the venom toxicity tables are clearly inaccurate! Species such as Centruroides gracilis are relatively weak all across their range, not just southern Florida! In addition, species such as Buthus occitanus have a more potent venom than illustrated here! Also, Rubio should have had his photographs identified by experts in the field before being published! Many of the photos were mis-labeled -- for instance, there is a photo of Androctonus australis that is labeled as Leiurus quinquestriatus, and there is another photo labeled Leiurus that is probably a Buthacus sp. Finally, a few of the photos were clearly of dead specimens (ala Hadrurus arizonensis pallidus and Vaejovis flavus -- I think that was them)...

Looking through the "minor" problems, if you're looking for a book with good information on the captive rearing of scorps, this book is the competition!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE BOOK for those new to scorpions, September 7, 2005

By 

Lucian Ross "Barkscorpions" (Detroit, MI, U.S.A.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scorpions (Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals) (Paperback)

Despite a few inaccuracies and errors described elsewhere by another reviewer, this book will offer anyone new to keeping scorpions or who is curious about these most remarkable of animals an easy to read offering covering many diverse aspects of scorpions.
For those interested in keeping scorpions in captivity with little or no experience, this book should be considered a must read (along with "The Biology of Scorpions" by Gary A. Polis), as it offers a great deal of general information and care and maintenance information in an easy to read format for layperson and advanced keeper alike.
I'd recommend this book (and have dozens of times) to anyone with even a passing interest in scorpions.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars THE beginner's book, June 11, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Scorpions (Barron's Complete Pet Owner's Manuals) (Paperback)

A concise look at scorpion biology for the pet keeper. Has a good section on species commonly available (arranged in groups as easy, difficult and dangerous). Has a good overview of habitat requirements, but I wish it had more specifics in keeping the various species...this section is arranged in table form only. It only took me an hour to read it, and I wish it had gone into more detail in general.