Tarantulas of the World

The Curlyhair tarantula also known as the Honduran Curlyhair is a type of tarantula from Central America, primarily found in Honduras and Costa Rica. This tarantula is loved due to its dark color and golden/bronze hairs all over its body that is more wavy then it is curly. They grow to be about 5 to 6 inches.They are docile and can last you quite a bit with females growing to be as old as 10 years. They are slow moving and easy to handle.

Habitat:

The Curlyhair tarantula is a terrestrial tarantula but also an opportunistic burrower. A full grown tarantula will require a 10 to 15 gallon tank that is about twice the width of its leg span and should be just tll enough for it to be able to flip over when in premolting stages. Your enclosure should have about 4 inches of substrate, preferably a peat moss/coconut fiber mixture that should be lightly damp. They should do just fine with about 75 to 85 percent humidity and a temperature of about 80 to 85 degrees. a hide should also be present in the enclosure should your tarantula need it. In addition a fresh shallow water dish that is always overfilled should also be readily available. Spraying is not needed however you can still do so from time to time. Do not spray directly onto your tarantula.

Feeding:

A steady diet of crickets and cockroaches should be fine for your tarantula as they are easy eaters. As always do leave prey in its enclosure for more then 24 hours.

Attitude:

They are by far a docile species. Easy to handle but be careful to not startle your tarantula. They do come equipped with urticating hairs which they will use should they feel threatened. This spider will use either its urticating hairs or defensive posture before it would try to bite. Its venom is only mild and in most cases does not give any side effects.

The Curlyhair Tarantula is a great beginner tarantula and great care should be given to keep yours living for a long time. As always, though easy to handle, be careful not to drop your tarantula as it can be fatal.

The Mexican Fireleg Tarantula also called the Mexican Rustleg tarantula is another crowd favorite from Mexico. They come from the dry savannahs of Mexico and grow to be about  6.5 inches with a life span of 7 to 11 years with females growing to be older. They are very beautiful with their nice red/orange and black colors. They are good at being beginner tarantulas but we recommend you do some research on them before purchasing one due to their skittishness and no hesitation to flick urticating hairs.

Habitat:

The Mexican Fireleg tarantula tends to burrow and so we do recommend an enclosure with 4 to 5 inches of damp substrate preferably  of coconut fiber (such as eco earth). You should also have a medium bark  in your enclosure so that it can use it as a hide to burrow under.  As most B. boehmei do not grow to be very large a 5 gallon tank should be just fine for the majority of its life as it reaches adulthood it might just end up getting slightly bigger requiring a 10 gallon tank but that can take years to happen. They usually prefer very dry environments and so overfilling its water dish in a corner should be plenty for it to get the right humidity it is looking for. Temperature wise you are looking at keeping it at a steady 75 to 85 degrees. If its a comfortable temperature for you chances are it will be the same for your tarantula.

Feeding:

Your Mexican Fireleg Tarantula is easily a great eater, you just have to make sure they do not overfeed. Feeding slings a couple of times a week, juveniles once a week and adults once every other week should do the trick. Their food should consist of small flightless fruit flies and small crickets as spiderlings to large crickets, roaches and meal worms as juveniles and adults. As always never feed your tarantula something bigger then its body to prevent the tarantula from injuring itself while attacking the prey. The reason you should keep such a feeding pattern is that as they get older it is key to check up on them going through molting phases. Most adults can go 3 or more weeks without eating if they are getting ready to molt and this pattern of feeding might help with stressing your tarantula less. If after 24 hours you see your tarantula not eating you should remove its food source out of the enclosure.

Attitude:

The Mexican Fireleg is quite docile as compared to other species of tarantulas. Handling should be easy but you should always check your tarantula to see if it is in the mood to be handled before picking him or her up. They are the most nervous of all brachypelmas and do not hesitate in flicking their hairs. Being that they are brachypelmas they are equipped with type 3 urticaing hairs which are quite distressful. They are not known for biting but that does not mean they will never bite. Though painful their bite should not feel any worse then a bee sting. Their venom though potent to kill insects only causes minor pain if not any pain at all for humans.

The Mexican Fireleg is one of the easiest tarantulas to fall in love with. They are low maintenance and docile in nature. . Though you can easily handle them make sure you do so carefully to prevent getting urticating hairs all over your arms (it will be one annoying rash). We highly recommend this as a beginner/intermediate tarantula.

Do you have a Mexican Fireleg? Have any questions about your B. boehmei? Tell us about it! Comment down below we’d love to hear from you.

The Mexican Red Rump (also known as the B.vagans) is a tarantula originally from Mexico but can be found in Guatemala and El Salvador. These tarantulas are very striking due to their jet black color and their dark red urticating hairs on their abdomen. Females tend to age as old as 15 years while a male age around 5 to 6 years. Most Mexican Red Rumps end up grow fast and a fully mature tarantula will end up being about 6 inches in length.

Habitat:

The Mexican Red Rump love a dry environment. For a full size Mexican Red Rump the most you will need would be a 10 gallon enclosure. Make sure it has a temperature of about 75 to 85 degrees with about 65% humidity. We would recommend you add a substrate such as eco-earth and simply making a corner of the enclosure damp. This species is also known for burrowing so be sure to setting your substrate with a depth of 3 to 4o inches. Make sure to also provide a water dish and bark in the enclosure in the event your tarantula gets thirsty or needs a place to hide.

Feeding:

Feeding should not be a problem at all. In the wild these tarantulas are known for feeding on insects and small rodents or lizards. In captivity however, they will survive just fine on a steady diet of large crickets and cockroaches. You can not overfeed these animals and the more they want to eat the more you can feed them.

Attitude:

These animals are quite docile and being New World tarantulas are very slow. However they do suffer from mood swings from time to time and may become skittish. They are normally very easy to handle but be sure to check your tarantula out to see if its in the mood to be touched. As a defense mechanism they do flick off their urticating hairs and as last resort bite. This is very rare and should not be something of extreme concern.

Your Mexican Red Rump will spend most of its time just sitting in one spot and not moving much. They are very easy to handle and are recommended for beginner/intermediate tarantula hobbyist. Following simple steps you can ensure your tarantula lives a long and healthy life and will be easy to handle.