l.parahybana housing

[iain dickie]

hi guys and gals

just a quick question , what size of tank would be best for an adult l.parahybana

shes only a spiderling just now, im just trying to price a half decent tank!

any info would be good

iain

[Christopher Smallman]

The minimum size formula is ~

Length = 3 times the length of the spider Width = 1.5 times the length of the spider and Depth = the length of the spider but you can fiddle that with the amount of substrate you put in just as long as she can touch some part of the ground if hanging from the roof is her thing.

I did check the BTS Guides thinking that was where I got this info but its not there so who knows where I got it from just hope it sounds right lol.

This is the minimum size so you can go crazy and give it an exact copy of its natural home if that takes your fancy

Chris.

[R Thomas]

Fully grown they can be between 7.5 and 10" legspan and the rule is 1.5 x legspan width and 3 x legspan length for floorspace. So 12" to 15" wide and 24" to 30" length tank. Obviously not too tall and with 3 to 5" of substrate and a hide.

Richard

[R Thomas]

Some sites use the odd formula of the legspan + 1.5 x the legspan for length which in my mathematical brain is easier as 2.5 x the legspan - why do they make things so complex. Almost any terrestrial tarantula wont need a tank taller than 15cms and most tarantulas that burrow rarely leave 10cm radius of their burrows anyway. Added this as Chris and I posted at the same time and thought I better give a bit of differing opinion for you perusal.

Richard

[iain dickie]

thanks guys .... i was looking at an exo terra 24x 18x 18 or my other option is to try house of spiders for a perspex tank .

[iain dickie]

also whats you guys opinion on wooden vivariuims ?

[R Thomas]

Well for reptile housing it was always go with wooden vivariums over glass. I am not going to say why here as this isnt a reptile question. It does however raise the point that housing tarantulas on the whole seems to favour all around visibility for the owners benefit more than the tarantulas. A number of pokies prefer a darkened enclosure so it would seem ideal for a wooden enclosure. I imagine that the reason wooden enclosures arent so popular is due to their cost and the fact that most tarantula owners end up with quite a few tarantulas over a period of time. It is odd really as often tarantula owners end up housing their collections in wooden cupboards / wardrobes etc.

So Iain I think it all boils down to what you can afford and a well ventilated wooden enclosure should be easier to maintain at the correct temperature than a glass one although I do not think I have seen one with a deep enough section under the sliding doors for a decent layer of substrate. Other issues will relate to the humidity needed for the tarantula you are housing a wooden enclosure at very high humidity can lead to its own problems.

If I was offered a decent size wood vivarium I would probably use it as the home for my slings as it would be easier to maintain the temperature and humidity inside it and could hopefully hold a large number of deli cups etc.

If I was myself housing a larger tarantula then I think a big glass enclosure with a top removable or sliding lid would be my first choice.

At the end of the day I do not think there is any reason why you couldnt use a wooden enclosure but I do not think it is as necessary as it would be for housing reptiles.

Richard

[Stanley A. Schultz]

thanks guys .... i was looking at an exo terra 24x 18x 18 or my other option is to try house of spiders for a perspex tank .

Exo-Terras are nice, but too tall for terrestrial species, and rather expensive.

I'm more of a pragmatist than a dreamer, so I prefer either of two styles.

The first is a plastic sweater boxe from department stores (wide enough, long enough, not too tall, not too expensive). Their major drawback is that they're not very "scenic."

The other style I like are simple aquaria. Again, choose one that's long, wide, and flat. Years ago, several aquarium manufacturers were marketing "breeder" tanks. For an adult L. parahybana you'd want one that measured 18" (45 cm) wide, 36" (90 cm) long, and between 12" and 16" (30 cm to 40 cm) tall.

If you can't find any of those dimensions, and are unwilling or unable to make your own, you can buy a commercial aquarium measuring 12" (30 cm) wide, 30" (75 cm) long, and 12" to 14" (30 cm to 40 cm) tall. In North America these are sold as "20L," and 22L" tanks, referring to their capacity in gallons (an archaic measure still used in several third world countries. [Dig! Dig!]).

Don't get cheap about the cover. You want one made of hot dip galvanized wire mesh. This material has holes between 1/8" and 1/4" (3 to 6 mm) square, and the wire is significantly thicker than window screen. DO NOT EVER USE WINDOW SCREEN, especially with a tarantula that grows to the size of a parahybana. They can chew through it almost as though it wasn't there at all! I don't know what they might call this mesh in the UK, but in North America it's sometimes mistakenly called "chicken wire." You may have to search a little to find an aquarium cover made of this material, but it's worth the effort.

Lastly, forget all the mumbo-jumbo about temperature preferences and humidity levels that you'll see on the 'Net. They're comfortable at just about any temperature you are, and they couldn't care less about humidity unless you keep them too wet.

Except for their size, these look and act a lot like Brachypelma albopilosum, another very easily kept species, and should be given about the same care. That generally amounts to setting up a basic cage, giving them a water dish, feeding them once a week (or less!) and generally forgetting them beyond that.

Those of us who've tried handling them have found them to be largely docile. The trick is to start handling them gently when they get large enough to span a coffee cup. Handle them almost daily. They'll tame right down within a few sessions, and are docile pussy cats after that.

The major trick is not wetting your pants when you pick up a tarantula that's the size of your face!

Enjoy your tarantzilla!

[iain dickie]

Hi Richard

Thanks for that reply that's really helped me with a few points ?

I'm now moving away from the idea of a wooden vivarium !

Iain

[iain dickie]

Hi stan

Thank you for all that information that has been a great help !
I think I'll look for a good aquarium but if I can't get the correct size I'll go for a sweater box !

As for the temperature the Internet information is so random and incorrect alot of the time !

I'm not sure I'll be handling her just yet ! More for her safety then mines but never say never

Thanks again for your information
Iain

[R Thomas]

Well Iain,

If you have not already bought Stan and Marguerite's book the TARANTULA KEEPER'S GUIDE then you are missing out on a wealth of very useful information.

I am now sat here wondering if the information I gave met with Stan's approval or not lol.

Runs off to read the corresponding chapters

Richard

[iain dickie]

Hi
I've not bought it yet,but will very soon !

The holy Grail of the tarantula world

[Joanna Pendleton]

First off just to say - what a great book I love it, really enjoy reading it!

Our L.parahybana is my favourite T at the moment. all this information is so helpful. At what age would you put them into this sized enclosure? would you wait until they are adult size and give them several enclosure sizes as they grow, or would a juvie be ok in what would then be a very large cage until they grow?

I guess that is a question for all Ts. At the moment all my Ts are in size appropriate enclosures, but my 2 juvies have both recently molted and need new enclosures.

Thanks, J x

[R Thomas]

At what age would you put them into this sized enclosure? would you wait until they are adult size and give them several enclosure sizes as they grow, or would a juvie be ok in what would then be a very large cage until they grow?

Having read this and sitting here infront of my collection I realise that although I try to keep my spiders in age appropriate containers from which I then move them up from as they grow to larger containers I seem to treat terrestrial spiders differently to arboreal ones. I realise that in comparison to the spiders size I tend to give arboreal spiders much larger containers. Perhaps this is sensible as arboreal spiders seem to thrive on space whereas terrestrial spiders seem happier with containers that are not massively oversized. I think that as most terrestrial spiders in nature tend not to stray far from their homes (I read that they do not tend to move more than 10 cms from their base) I tend to keep them in cozy quarters. Whereas I imagine that arboreals have more tendancy to climb higher and further and some species tend also to be more active so I give them more space. If however you were only going to keep the odd one or two tarantulas and wanted enclosures that they could grow into then I am sure they would adjust to the extra penthouse space although I think I read that tarantulas tend to feel happier (and whose opinion this is and how they proved it I do not know) in cozy quarters lol

Richard