Cora's home

[Chris R. Jones (Sirunus)]

My Mexican Redknee seems to have settled in very well. She's adopted the corner next to the heat mat, though it's a worry that she hasn't used the cave-like retreat I set up, but she does clamber over it. The substrate I use is moss, then sand, then more moss, then more sand with bits of moss here and there. The moss maintains all the humidity while the desert sand absorpts some of it into the air. (The humidity of the substrate was 85% when I last checked while the air is in the mid 70's). Though I'm worried the desert sand is not deep enough for Cora to dig into, I have seen her footprints in it. She's not made any webs at the moment, though her terrarium is starting to look like a desert with vegetation growing all over the place.

During the day she just sits still and does nothing. During the night she likes to climb up the glass walls and crawl upsidedown on the mesh lid. She'll walk around in big circles but now she just sits in her domicile all day and all night. Too bad it's in a corner I can't see her very well. But now I drop Mealworms right next to her. I've only had her since Friday and she's already eaten seven or eight Mealworms! She hasn't flicked hairs at me yet, even when I tamper with her home she just sits there calmly.

I'm wondering, will she find the little cave? Will she make any webs and will she dig into the substrate? (the sand is deeper in some places).

Thanks for reading,

~Chris

[Stefan]

Hello cant be long so I will right quich

1) plants growing in your tank is a worrying thing. Plants have defences too, that could harm a spider.

2) Without knowing the size of the meal worms you are feeding the spider it sounds like you are over feeding it. Be very very carefull.

3) a cage mesh doesnt sound like the best of ideas. It provides great ventilation which is important, especially for the avic, But this could cause a dangerous play area for it.

What does everybody else think...

Hope you don't think im getting on at you.

Cya around

Matt

[Eleanor]

Hi, she sounds fine, and sitting around during the day and climbing at night is fairly normal behaviour!

I would comment on the substrate you are using though. Is it live moss? Without actually seeing it, I would imagine that the humidity in her cave might be very high, and she wouldn't want to use it if it is too humid in there. But she may just not feel the need for a shelter and be perfectly happy sitting out.

Also, perhaps more importantly, you may have trouble keeping it clean. If you have clumps of pure moss and then areas of pure sand in between the bits of moss, there will be very wet bits and drier bits, no matter how careful you are, which will be perfect for breeding pests. I think it might be best if you don't experiment with substrate until you have more experience (I haven't experimented at all!) and stick with something that we've all tried and know works, namely compost and/or vermiculite (most people recommend moss peat but that is not very environmentally friendly since it can't be produced sustainably). She will be able to burrow, if she wants to, much more easily if you give her compost or a mixture of compost and vermiculite, which is what I use.

I also agree with Stefan about the mesh, but it is hard to comment without seeing it.

Good luck with her.

[Chris R. Jones (Sirunus)]

Thanks everyone. To be fair I'm not particulary fond of vermiculite, because I hear some commercial grade vermiculite can contain abestos that links with lung disease. Would it be alright if I mixed compost with the moss and sand? She's sat in this corner where it's hard for me to get her out via plastic container, I may have to handle her. As for vermiculite, where could I get some other than ordering?

[Stefan]

hello. I believe vermiculite is great stuff. I mix it 50/50 with compost. it's very very good stuff. You can get it from just about any garden center as gardeners use it for their plants. That's what it is supposed to be used for.

Kind regards,

Matt

[Eleanor]

If you're worried about vermiculite then I'm sure that you can mix the compost with sand and it will be fine. You could even use pure compost. Mixing it with something improves the ability of water to pass through it, so it is 'lighter' and contains air spaces, so it will make life easier when you try to maintain a certain level of moisture in it. But since we're growing a tarantula and not a plant (I am a botanist, sorry...) perhaps that doesn't matter so much! Also, red knees don't need high humidity anyway.

Other alternatives for mixing with compost to make it lighter, if you want to, are perlite (which is very white), or composted bark mulch (if you can find any with small pieces of bark and not huge pieces).

[Chris R. Jones (Sirunus)]

Bingo! I mixed the compost with sand and live moss. Now the substrate is several inches deep. It looks less appealing, but let's hope it'll initiate Cora's burrowing habits.