C huahini male..?

[ian goldie]

Hi people! First post on here.. I was wondering if anyone has any info on C huahini males; I bought a baby (approx 3months judging by size, so I reckon he's about a year and a half old ish) last november, he's developed into a male with a leg span of approx 3-4 inches (hard to tell cos he likes to hide).. Info on these species seems few and far between, particuarly the males. Does anyone have any info regarding lifespan, sexual maturity, anything..? He doesn't seem to have grown much in the last few months. I would love to be able to offer him up for breeding at some stage and if he only has a short life span I'd hate for him not to have had the chance to meet a lady
PS he's a feisty one, capable of jumping several feet through the air as I found out once when I tried to move him to a bigger tank
Thank you very kindly

[R Thomas]

The thing that I find fascinating about this species is the fact that some tend to become obligate burrowers and others become arboreal in nature. It is often recommended that you watch how they behave for a month or two and then rehouse correspondingly. Not sure what other species have this either/or tendancy. The males I believe are a lot smaller than the females when mature (see picture below) and as such at risk of sexual canabalism.



In reference to your other questions the simple answer is I do not know their lifespans but I do hope you get lucky and find him a dinner date without him being on the menu lol

Richard

[ian goldie]

Thanks Richard I appreciate the info. I'm not 100% sure but aren't some OBTs climbers as well as burrowers? My huahini seemed perfectly happy either hiding in his silk retreat or climbing up the living room wall at high speed.. He does seem a little subdued since I moved him to a bigger enclosure (in which I provided a false burrow and relatively high sides to give him an opportunity to either climb or dig, so far he's done neither) a few months ago, all he's done is stick to a corner and made a blanket of silk and refused all food although I'm fairly sure he's not in pre-moult as he hasn't really grown or eaten since the last moult but I could be wrong. In the meantime I'll keep digging for answers!

[R Thomas]

It can be very infuriating to have a tarantula where the information is few and far between. I suppose in reality the fact that we know as much as we do about tarantulas is due to the obsession we have with keeping them and watching them. With new species appearing all the time and non specific sp. "xxxxxxxx" appearing we will probably never have a definitive answer to a lot of these questions. My thanks however go out to all those in the hobby that are willing to share their knowledge and findings with the rest of us that need it. I am sure that given time someone much more knowledgable will see this thread and post the answers to your questions. Neither of my OBTs has ever ventured off the ground far and both seem to be hidden in burrows nearly 100% of the time - in my opinion no arboreal tendancy at all has been shown.

Richard

[ian goldie]

Thanks again Richard, only reason I mentioned OBT before was a while back mine decided to take a wander when the lid wasn't closed properly and we later found her on the ceiling directly above where my missus was eating breakfast! She was only a juvie then so not sure if she could repeat the feat, not that she'd get the opportunity again....