I'm considering getting one monster spider, and there is a 9" Lasidora parahybana on offer to me. I'm wondering who here has experience with these beasts, specifically:
How large a tank would you provide for an example this big?
What is their general temperament, and are they hair-kickers?
Can they subsist on just crickets or will I have to feed them pinky mice to really nourish them?
PC
BayLee
John and Rachel both have a huge one, which they always bring to the show and meetings sometimes.
I suggest a 10 gallon at least. Dry substrate, water dish and a hide.
Edgar brought one, which he handled today. Most of them should not be handled but the one Edgar had seems to be an exception. I guess he has some special powers of her.
BayLee
John and Rachel both have a huge one, which they sometimes bring to shows and meetings .
I suggest a 10 gallon at least. Dry substrate, water dish and a hide.
Edgar brought one, which he handled today. Most of them should not be handled but the one Edgar had seems to be an exception. I guess he has some special powers of her.
Just don't breed her, because you may end up with 2000 +/- slings...
balam
I ban Loni for spamming the thread.... ha ha j/k
umm, L. parahybana, and for the most part all Lasiodora T's tend to be rather defensive. Like anything else, there are exceptions. AFAIK, the most common method is the hairs, MAJOR hair kickers, I was doing some L. difficilis breeding earlier in the evening and I got a face-full of urticating hairs from the female as I was trying to *save* the male.
Thankfully none in the eyes, but my face was itching real good, I had to flush my face with water for a good while.
Anyhow...
They will easily engage in thread posture and are known to strike the ground. A member from SCABIES was bit by a two-inch little bugger (L. parahybana) and suffered the pain, these guys' venom isn't too bad from what I hear, but the mechanical damage from the fangs on a 9" T is sure to hurt some.
Regarding the diet, no matter what the Tarantula species or size you may want to offer a variety of food. On a T that particular size it would be good (though not strictly necessary) to feed roaches (lateralis seem to be good as they don't burrow) like dubias, crickets, mealworms and, if you and your T are up to it, a pinkie or hopper mouse every once in a long while. You may also try Anoles as a supplement, specially to give the female a great nourishment if attempting a breeding, it may also deter her from trying to eat the male (as they seem to like trying to do so).
I hope this helps you make a better informed decision about your future pet. Research the genus further and see if this is something you might be interested in. Oh, a BIG ONE, remember, some of the T's in the hobby are for *seeing*, not for *holding*, although exceptions exists in all species, L. parahybana are rather defensive and you may or may not have a sweety-pie like the one Edgar was holding.
Good luck :)
Oscar R.
BayLee
Who me? Spamming???
Never...
I agree all Oscar said with the exception of feeding pinkies or hopper mice.
Just leaves a big mess and may invite mites.
Some say the extra calcium can do more damage then good. None has really been proven but I would stay away from it.
Maybe freed a big hisser instead.
daveemory
balam wrote:
Oh, a BIG ONE, remember, some of the T's in the hobby are for *seeing*, not for *holding*, although exceptions exists in all species, L. parahybana are rather defensive and you may or may not have a sweety-pie like the one Edgar was holding.
Good luck :)
Oscar R.
Yes, I have definitely considered this from various sides. But in truth, I don't think my "more holdable" species like being held at all (my B. albopilosum, G. rosea and wild-caught Apohonopelma have all kicked hairs onto me multiple times). Only my B. emilia seems consistently OK with being held, with the juvenile Chaco a close second. I've never seen either of them kick hairs.
Ideally, I would like to be able to occasionally lift this bugger out of the cage and show it to people, but I realize this is not the most important or reasonable consideration.
As to a 10 gallon tank, at 20" length that's only slightly over twice the legspan of the spider. Is that really enough, since rule of thumb seems to indicate four times leg span? Or do these guys stick fairly close to burrow-home?
