That is a stunning boehmei mate, where did you get her from?Originally posted by Nexus
So, you want to keep a pet tarantula?
- Thread starter Lopéz
- Start date
- Status
Back from the show and all I can say is WOW!
There really was something for everyone, from 30p Salmon Pinks to £140 Poecilotheria metallica spiderlings! (hugely rare)
Kate and I went on a spending spree, she came back with 4 and I got my fair share too.
We also picked up slings for Repo and hsp70.
So, let's meet the new arrivals.
Please bear in mind all these T's are very cold and very stressed, hence some of them being rather hunched up.
Repo and hsp70, here are your Tiger Rump Doppelgangers (Cyclosternum fasciatum)
These are slightly nervy but non-aggressive tarantulas, I've handled mine with no bother already.
Pretty small (largest I've seen is about 5") but they make up for it in the colouring.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Cyclosternumfasciatum03
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Cyclosternumfasciatum04
The second one is a touch smaller, but it's JUST moulted today by the looks of things. As for who's getting what, don't ask because they'll be popped in a vial Monday or Tuesday and posted, so you get what yer given
I also got some Emperor scorpions for the guy in my pet shop. One is a gravid female, the other is an adult female, and there are 3 babies (I may keep one myself)
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Pandinusemperator01
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Pandinusemperator02
Right, that's the stuff bought by proxy over and done with, my own new purchases coming up!
There really was something for everyone, from 30p Salmon Pinks to £140 Poecilotheria metallica spiderlings! (hugely rare)
Kate and I went on a spending spree, she came back with 4 and I got my fair share too.
We also picked up slings for Repo and hsp70.
So, let's meet the new arrivals.
Please bear in mind all these T's are very cold and very stressed, hence some of them being rather hunched up.
Repo and hsp70, here are your Tiger Rump Doppelgangers (Cyclosternum fasciatum)
These are slightly nervy but non-aggressive tarantulas, I've handled mine with no bother already.
Pretty small (largest I've seen is about 5") but they make up for it in the colouring.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Cyclosternumfasciatum03
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Cyclosternumfasciatum04
The second one is a touch smaller, but it's JUST moulted today by the looks of things. As for who's getting what, don't ask because they'll be popped in a vial Monday or Tuesday and posted, so you get what yer given
I also got some Emperor scorpions for the guy in my pet shop. One is a gravid female, the other is an adult female, and there are 3 babies (I may keep one myself)
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Pandinusemperator01
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Pandinusemperator02
Right, that's the stuff bought by proxy over and done with, my own new purchases coming up!
Well before I went I made a wish-list, and promised myself I'd not deviate from it.....too much.
After a long queue to get in, I was very pleased to find that both halls were packed with traders from the UK and Europe - lots of dour humourless Germans.
Plenty of decent-sized adult spiders on show, all at pretty reasonable prices - the only thing I would have called extortionate were the (extremely rare and desirable) Poecilotheria metallica spiderlings at a nut-busting £140 each from some garlic-munching, wine-swilling Frenchman. No way am I paying that - I'll wait until one of my contacts breeds his and starts knocking them out at a far more reasonable rate.
So, onto what I actually bought myself.
First up, just like Kate's, a fat-arsed little Greenbottle blue (Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens) I've wanted one of these for so long now, and couldn't resist.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Chromatopelmacyaneopubescens04
Next we have another long-standing fave, and a very similar looking sling - Tiger-rump Doppelganger (Cyclosternum fasciatum)
I swooped down on these and bagged the biggest one at the whole damn show - the Germans were flogging minute ones for £7 a shot, and my beast was only £6!
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Cyclosternumfasciatum05
Then we have a lovely arboreal tarantula - the Trinidad Chevron.
These are from the same family as the stunning Suntigers, but are an overall fawn colour with mossy green markings. Nippy, aggressive, and grow to a healthy six or seven inches.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Psalmopeuscambridgei02
Right, that's the easy stuff dealt with, now here are the trickier ones.
Anyone want to hazard a guess at this little beastie?
It's actually a deep ultramarine blue with golden orange hairs, it's aggressive as hell despite being about half an inch long!
http://www.donsroom.co.uk/~lopez/Mystery01
And another mystery - all I can tell you about this one is it looks nothing like the adult it will hopefully become:
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Mystery02
Any guesses? I'm thinking about keeping one of those baby scorps myself, they're well cool.
After a long queue to get in, I was very pleased to find that both halls were packed with traders from the UK and Europe - lots of dour humourless Germans.
Plenty of decent-sized adult spiders on show, all at pretty reasonable prices - the only thing I would have called extortionate were the (extremely rare and desirable) Poecilotheria metallica spiderlings at a nut-busting £140 each from some garlic-munching, wine-swilling Frenchman. No way am I paying that - I'll wait until one of my contacts breeds his and starts knocking them out at a far more reasonable rate.
So, onto what I actually bought myself.
First up, just like Kate's, a fat-arsed little Greenbottle blue (Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens) I've wanted one of these for so long now, and couldn't resist.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Chromatopelmacyaneopubescens04
Next we have another long-standing fave, and a very similar looking sling - Tiger-rump Doppelganger (Cyclosternum fasciatum)
I swooped down on these and bagged the biggest one at the whole damn show - the Germans were flogging minute ones for £7 a shot, and my beast was only £6!
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Cyclosternumfasciatum05
Then we have a lovely arboreal tarantula - the Trinidad Chevron.
These are from the same family as the stunning Suntigers, but are an overall fawn colour with mossy green markings. Nippy, aggressive, and grow to a healthy six or seven inches.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Psalmopeuscambridgei02
Right, that's the easy stuff dealt with, now here are the trickier ones.
Anyone want to hazard a guess at this little beastie?
It's actually a deep ultramarine blue with golden orange hairs, it's aggressive as hell despite being about half an inch long!
http://www.donsroom.co.uk/~lopez/Mystery01
And another mystery - all I can tell you about this one is it looks nothing like the adult it will hopefully become:
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/Mystery02
Any guesses? I'm thinking about keeping one of those baby scorps myself, they're well cool.
We'll be posting them tomorrow mate. I'll feed them both first and then pack them up in the morning.Originally posted by Repo
The Tigerrumps both look great; looking forward to mine arriving next week
Nope, although I was tempted by a lovely Aphonopelma bicoloratum.
Think Asia
Seems the old "fingers crossed" trick works then. Yep, it's a Cobalt blue spiderling. Won't show any blue colouring until it's a fair bit bigger.
Therewere a fair few Goliaths there, but the chapest slings (about Idi's size) were £15 and I didn't want to spend my last £20 note. They can wait for another day.
Unfortunately we missed the lecture 
We did wander round looking for it, but couldn't find the lecture theatre.
The slings will be posted out tomorrow morning.
I've decided to keep one of these baby Emperor Scorpions for myself.
They're really cool, like something from another planet. They are great hunters, they corner the cricket, grab it with their large pincers, and eat it head first.
Here's my new one killing a cricket in the face.
http://www.donsroom.co.uk/~lopez/Pandinusemperator03
What a way to go
We did wander round looking for it, but couldn't find the lecture theatre.The slings will be posted out tomorrow morning.
I've decided to keep one of these baby Emperor Scorpions for myself.
They're really cool, like something from another planet. They are great hunters, they corner the cricket, grab it with their large pincers, and eat it head first.
Here's my new one killing a cricket in the face.
http://www.donsroom.co.uk/~lopez/Pandinusemperator03
What a way to go
Glad you're enjoying the thread so far.Originally posted by Kainz
I've spent 2hrs 30mins reading this thread so far and am really enjoying it.
Not read such an interesting thread about spideys ever, and for the first time ever it looks like i'm going to read through all 38 odd pages (on 17 atm). Some of the species are so cute I must admit. Still scared out of my wits though. Many times the phrase 'kicking hairs' has been mentioned, what does that precisely mean? Also, what is a Baboon?
Kicking Hairs:
All New World (Northern, Central & Southern American) tarantulas have a fine coating of urticating (itching) hairs - these are generally situated on the spiders abdomen (its bum)
When disturbed or annoyed, the spider will rapidly rub its legs against the abdomen, dislodging a cloud of these itchy hairs.
This wards off would-be attackers. Some species have itchier hairs than others - if you get them in your eyes it will hurt like hell and possibly cause temporary sight problems.
Baboon
Baboon spider is a generic term used to refer to the aggressive, short-haired tarantulas of Africa. There are several possible reasons for the name. Some people say it's because Baboons treat the spiders as a delicacy, others will tell you the spiders legs resemble the thick fingers of a Baboon.
Yes, I've had mites in Maz and Miguels tanks.
They look like small (1mm) cream/white coloured dots until you get up really close, then you might see the legs.
Even with sterelising the substrate, you can still get mites. They hitch a ride in on crickets, or sometimes they just seem to appear. Any warm and humid environment will allow them to thrive.
They only become a problem if you can actually see them all over the spider - many spider tanks have a few mites and it doesn't cause any bother - but when you have loads of them they need to be removed.
Just coax the spider into a temporary container, throw away the old substrate, clean out the tank properly and give the tarantula fresh peat. Some people just let the tank dry right out, which kills the mites, but you run the risk of a dehydrated spider.
To pick them up, you don't need to grip them at all - just put your hand out in front of the spider, and nudge it onto your palm.
If you want to avoid any contact, just use any old container (glass, jar, empty cricket tub) and place it over the spider before sliding a card under it - much like you'd remove a house spider with a pint glass and beer mat.
When you've finished changine the tank, simply put the glass back in and allow the tarantula to wander out in its own time.
Psycho tarantula? Well, just count yerself lucky you didn't get a boring pet rock one.
Not all tarantulas read books about themselves it seems - Kate's "docile" B vagans is a hissing ball of hellfire - sometimes that's just the way they are.
As for sitting on the side, most tarantulas will do this for a few days in new surroundings.
Kate's B emilia often sits with 4 feet on the side, 4 on the floor.
If the spider really doesn't seem to like sitting on the floor the answer is simple - the substrate is too wet.
Remember B smithi is a predominantly desert species and doesn't need it too wet.
The importance of humidity is normally overstressed - spiderlings apart, MOST tarantulas will survive happily with a large open water dish and nothing more.
Remember, unless you are misting a web or webbed patch of substrate, the water evaporates very quickly. I only mist my tropical species once a week directly on the web. Any more and it gets too swampy for them
Si, how big is the Smithi? I try to keep my T's in the smallest tanks possible these days.
Just a few points to remember.
Not all tarantulas read books about themselves it seems - Kate's "docile" B vagans is a hissing ball of hellfire - sometimes that's just the way they are.
As for sitting on the side, most tarantulas will do this for a few days in new surroundings.
Kate's B emilia often sits with 4 feet on the side, 4 on the floor.
If the spider really doesn't seem to like sitting on the floor the answer is simple - the substrate is too wet.
Remember B smithi is a predominantly desert species and doesn't need it too wet.
The importance of humidity is normally overstressed - spiderlings apart, MOST tarantulas will survive happily with a large open water dish and nothing more.
Remember, unless you are misting a web or webbed patch of substrate, the water evaporates very quickly. I only mist my tropical species once a week directly on the web. Any more and it gets too swampy for them
Si, how big is the Smithi? I try to keep my T's in the smallest tanks possible these days.
- It takes up less room
- Tarantulas need very little room to live happily
- Large tanks stress small tarantulas out
- Tarantulas are clumsy and struggle to find food in large or over-decorated tanks
Just a few points to remember.
Yep, let the substrate dry out a bit though - just give him a nice big water dish and keep it well topped up.
If you are getting a ground dweller (which I recommend) then you want a nice shallow container.
Here's my Greenbottle Blue tank:
http://www.donsroom.co.uk/~lopez/GBBTank
(Excuse the dirty hand, just been working on the car!)
As you can see, it isn't very big at all - and the spider will happily live in this for 6 months or so before it needs anything bigger - after that, the next stage is to use an empty cricket tub with some ventilation holes - free! That should be fine for another 6 months-year before you need a big tank.
Avoid lamps, they dry the spider out. You will need a heat mat, placed behind the tank, switched on at all times.
They cost from £8 for small ones up to £30 or so for really big ones.
Buy a medium size (£15-£18) one so the spider won't "outgrow" it.
You can get them from any reptile/pet shop these days
Go through all that on 56k?!Originally posted by DHR
Anyone with mod status (hint hint
Maybe when I've got a few very free hours to spare
Don't be afraid to bring up something you think might have already been covered
All my new T's have settled in and are feeding well.
I've managed to pick names for them all, as usual the names relate to their country of origin.
Greenbottle blue (Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens) - Venezuela - "Carabobo"
Tiger-rump Doppelganger (Cyclosternum fasciatum) - Costa Rica - "Punta"
Trinidad Chevron (Psalmopeus cambridgei) - Trinidad - "Winston"
Malaysian Earth Tiger (Cyriopagapus "thorelli") - Malaysia - "Chong" (This is the blueish spiderling with the orange spiny hairs)
Cobalt Blue (Haplopelma lividum) - Thailand - "Bangkok" (The second Mystery Spider)
Oh, and little Maz moulted yesterday. He's really coloured up nicely, in the light you can see he has steel blue legs.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/Maz02
If you look closely you can see the blue and violet hints over each leg, that will become brighter and brighter as the spider grows.
Glad he arrived safely mate, that's the first T I've packed for posting! Sorry about the packing tape, I think Kate got carried away
Have you checked out any care information on them yet?
If not, I've made a caresheet compilation you can download HERE
Please not I did NOT write these caresheets, I just compiled them together and therefore cannot accept credit for them
Have you checked out any care information on them yet?
If not, I've made a caresheet compilation you can download HERE
Please not I did NOT write these caresheets, I just compiled them together and therefore cannot accept credit for them
Yep, that's the stuff. T poo is odourless, and dries on contact with air into a white chalky substance.
Mugabe does exactly the same as yours - leaves runny marks down his tank all the damn time.
Kate, Zico is now one stunning little tarantula
Nice regalis! And that B smithi looks very chunky and healthy - the show was overrun with smithi's and that looks like a good one.
Poecilotheria do it more than others - as if they are stretching out.
My P irminia does it sometimes, but generally it's a Pokie thing
My P irminia does it sometimes, but generally it's a Pokie thing
They all look very healthy and well-fed mate.Originally posted by si_sleaf
Do you mean my G.rosea? Hmm, yes I suppose I could feed her a little less but she is so interesting to watch. If I put a cricket in there, she eats it within the hour. So I put another one in a couple of days later and she eats it. I give her another. It's a vicious circle of greedy eating. I read that Ts can't overeat so I just keep her goin. Perhaps I should cut down, what do you guys think? The crickets I give her are quite small so I don't know. Her butt is nowhere near the ground, and she is very active. Perhaps she's just big boned
Don't change a thing
Just leave them with plenty of water.
They can go for weeks or even months without food, so there's no need to worry about that Give them all a good feed before you go, but take out any uneaten cricks that are still alive - you don't want the cricket getting at the T if it moults while you are away.
They can go for weeks or even months without food, so there's no need to worry about that
Give them all a good feed before you go, but take out any uneaten cricks that are still alive - you don't want the cricket getting at the T if it moults while you are away.
Well I didwarn you didn't I?
They call them the "Pokies of the New World" for a reason!
Although Guarico my Psalmopeous irminia is fast rather than defensive, Winston my Psalmopeous cambridgei is quick to rear up and show me a threat posture.
At least I can say "Chiiillll Wiiinstooon" when he does this
As I only managed to get a blurry shot of him last week, here's a better one:
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/Winston01
And here's a much better shot of my Cyriopagapus thorelli, who I've named Chong.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/Chong01
He's the little blue thing with orange spines that I bought - and has quite the appetite! I'm hoping he will moult soon as I think he has a mite problem around his chelicerae.
My new Greenbottle Blue, Carabobo, is looking very sulky and isn't eating - so fingers crossed for a moult there too! Fantastic colouring on these spiderlings:
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/Carabobo01
Re: Terrible Tom
I got home yesterday to find that Punta, my C fasciatum, has just moulted.
Even today she's very pale (not to mention skinny!) so I'll need to wait a while before I can feed her up.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/Punta01
Spider, skin and 10p piece all in one shot (which took a bit of doing)
Yep, the two miniature legs at the front are indeed pedipalps.
I got home yesterday to find that Punta, my C fasciatum, has just moulted.
Even today she's very pale (not to mention skinny!) so I'll need to wait a while before I can feed her up.
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/Punta01
Spider, skin and 10p piece all in one shot (which took a bit of doing
)
Rick West is cool.
Apparently you can judge somebody's tarantula knowledge by the size of their beard...or so I'm told
On a more sombre note, Carabobo my Greenbottle Blue has gotten into moulting difficulties today
I got home to find him still stuck to his old skin - my first ever problem moult. It appears he was unable to seperate his fangs and pedipalps from the old skin.
Using a wet cotton bud I managed to persuade away the old skin (a horrible exercise)
One palp is dangling limp at the moment, and it seems the fangs are still encased in their old skin - there's just no way I can remove it.
I really hope he pulls through - I'm hoping if he recovers from the moult I will be able to feed him with mushed up crickets and mealworms.
Fingers crossed
Apparently you can judge somebody's tarantula knowledge by the size of their beard...or so I'm told
On a more sombre note, Carabobo my Greenbottle Blue has gotten into moulting difficulties today
I got home to find him still stuck to his old skin - my first ever problem moult. It appears he was unable to seperate his fangs and pedipalps from the old skin.
Using a wet cotton bud I managed to persuade away the old skin (a horrible exercise)
One palp is dangling limp at the moment, and it seems the fangs are still encased in their old skin - there's just no way I can remove it.
I really hope he pulls through - I'm hoping if he recovers from the moult I will be able to feed him with mushed up crickets and mealworms.
Fingers crossed
- Status