Tarantula hunting in california???

Well i been thinking about doing it but dont know anything about it, other than what i read in the other thread, my question is, is there anyone in the california area that knows where i should look, i live in palmdale california, in the desert.......... im assuming this is a g ood place to look ????? or where else could i look???? theres areas of desert out here......... is this a good time of year to look for them???????? anyways please anyone in the california area drop me some info....... o yeh im not gonna be collecting a whole gang load of tarantulas or anything, maybe keep just one .............. thought it be a fun thing to go out and do also.....

Just ask any outdoorsy people or ranchers you know. The males are often spotted and squished on roads and usually right where you see the male their is a colony.

Okay I live near by and I found a big Tarantula in Phelan california. its called a Desert blonde Tarantula. i found a female and its only maybe about 1 or 2 years old. These tarantulas are most common in mexico arizona especially. they grow up to 6 inches long and will live from 23 to 25 years. but the best place to searching for them is in desert bush areas or most commonly have you seen a hole in the ground maybe about the size of a quarter with webs covering the hole???? well your looking at a desert blonde Tarantulas home the hole will be anywhere from the size of a quarter and only up to 2 inches around. they can possibly live there for decades. and also some of these tarantula will take over rodent holes such as rats mice and squirrels. (IMPORTANT) if you want to definitely find a tarantulas they will come out only at sunset or before sun sunrise remember tarantulas are nocturnal so they will especially come out at dark. (IMPORTANT) this typical type of tarantula is not even close to being harmful they if bitten by a desert blonde tarantula it will only feel about the same pane as a bee sting. this typical type of tarantula is not harmful. and if bitten dont even worry unless you are allergic to the venom. and if you come across a hole in the ground with thick sttrand of webbing around it im actually not too sure how to get it out unless you dig its hole out without injuring the tarantula. but (NOTE) this type of tarantula will release these little barbs of hair at you using it back legs as a defense. but all this can do to you is make you itchy. no worries but again ( I LIVE IN PHELAN CALIFORNIA NEAR PALMDALE AND THIS IS MAYBE A GREAT PLACE TO SEARCH FOR A TARANTULA BUT ONLY SEARCH FOR THEM AFTER SUNSET AND GO WHERE THERE IS A LOT OF DESERT AREA)

Just a Note on the Aphonopelma species which are typically found in the South west and west. The previous poster stated a female he found was only one - two years old. Don't know how they would know that since i have a 2 and 3 year old Aphonopelma sp. that is only 1.75-2.25" dls. Secondly, these ones are thought to live much longer, but the information on them is not as available as other species. outside of that, most of it is good information. Just watch for snakes. I'm in the LA area, by OC, so if you want to do some hunting more towards spring time, I'd be happy to join ya.

Just something to think about: Tarantula keeping is a great hobby but out of respect for the wild tarantulas I would refrain from taking them from the wild. There are plenty of captive bred tarantulas you could buy. I know there may be some personal reason you find the need to catch tarantulas instead of buying them (i.e. Money), but I'd just like you to really think about it before you take such a beautiful wild creature and put it in a cage. Also you're way better off buying captive breed specimens because wild caught could carry diseases which would in turn harm you're other tarantulas.

I hope you don't feel like I'm forcing my opinion down your throat. It's just something to think about.

I agree on leaving wild Ts in their habitat. My opinion also, and not flaming anyone, just what i believe.

I'm in agreement with leaving wild spiders in the wild.

Ask yourself why you want a wild caught tarantula.

Is it a dollar thing? If so, you can get them cheap from some dealers, ...heck they even throw in freebies.

However, I've seen that people rarely respect the things that come free. It's not a replaceable trinket made in SE Asia. It's a creature that everyone here respects, and is even revered by some.

If it's because you respect the animal, then respect it enough to observe and leave it be.

Not only does wild collection of adults hurt wild populations, but if it were to die by some action or inaction on your part, would that bother you? Is it worth the risk?

Every year, I make a pilgramage to Arizona to, among other things, see and photograph animals that don't occur here where I leave. For the past few years I've visited the same spider burrow and "tickled" the same female out for pictures. She means at least as much to me as the ones that live in my house. ...she's also probably just as healthy, ....and I don't have to pay for her crickets. :biggrin:

JMO.

I don't think I would keep any wild caught specimens unless they were something that would be amazing in a collection. However, I don't feel that the OP was looking to go hunting in the respects of catch and keep, but more on the catch and release.