Question about avic. Versicolor maturity.

Assuming its a female (because males would have hooks) about what size are verso colors mature? I've had mine for about a year and a half now and (s)he's about 4-4 1/2 inches now. (S)he molted yesterday and I'm rehousing it in a week so I'll check for hooks. I have yet to have her sexed.

Whats the condition of the molt? Easiest way to sex would be grab the fresh molt, soak it in a soap/water solution so you can manipulate it then check for spermathecae, if you're unsure what spermathecae looks like or whee it can be found, take a look in the sexing sub-forum to get an idea of what you're looking for.

Also personally at that size I'd wait nearer to a month before moving it to a new enclosure as at that size they take a little while longer to fully harden.

When you check for a MM, check the palps.
Hooks are difficult to spot on A. versicolor due to their fuzziness.

Even though this particular species gets hooks, not all species do. You'd be better suited to learn to check for bulbous pedipalps if you're making sure your tarantula is not a mature male.

Curious jay said:

Whats the condition of the molt? Easiest way to sex would be grab the fresh molt, soak it in a soap/water solution so you can manipulate it then check for spermathecae, if you're unsure what spermathecae looks like or whee it can be found, take a look in the sexing sub-forum to get an idea of what you're looking for.

Also personally at that size I'd wait nearer to a month before moving it to a new enclosure as at that size they take a little while longer to fully harden.

Click to expand...

I wish I could do this but alas I cannot for two reasons:
1 I don't have a microscope to check
2 she destroyed a lot of her molt before I wrestled her for it. (Just an expression, she dropped it and retreated when she noticed me.
And thank you for the advice I will wait longer then previously stated.

At 4-4 1/2" you wouldn't need a microscope to see the spermathecae, you just need to know what you're looking for. It's not as hard as it may seem.

LordWaffle said:

At 4-4 1/2" you wouldn't need a microscope to see the spermathecae, you just need to know what you're looking for. It's not as hard as it may seem.

Click to expand...

I'll post pics of his/her undercarriage later on once she hardens.

Even if it doesn't have hooks doesn't mean it's not a male. Could be an immature male.

Athenas Boy said:

I'll post pics of his/her undercarriage later on once she hardens.

Click to expand...

Spermathecae will only be visible on the inside of the molt.
Undercarriage shot will get you a less accurate guess on the gender (depending on the photo quality, and the person doing the "guessing")

Tcks123 said:

Even if it doesn't have hooks doesn't mean it's not a male. Could be an immature male.

Click to expand...

Yes im aware. But finding hooks would kill 2 questions with one stone.

Athenas Boy said:

Yes im aware. But finding hooks would kill 2 questions with one stone.

Click to expand...

Hooks don't show up until a male's final molt. They are only good for showing sex if the male in question is mature.

cold blood said:

Hooks don't show up until a male's final molt. They are only good for showing sex if the male in question is mature.

Click to expand...

Like I said 2 birds with one stone

In some arboreal species mature males don't have hooks, I always look for the "boxing gloves". In my opinion they're easier to spot. Put a picture of its vents! Avics especially versis have big lips, so they're much easier to sex ventrically.

After I'm done unpacking, I'll put some pictures of my mature male versis, I'll show you thr boxing gloves and hooks on the mm diversipes. Lastly I'll show you the differences between the male and female vents.

fuzzyavics72 said:

In some arboreal species mature males don't have hooks, I always look for the "boxing gloves". In my opinion they're easier to spot. Put a picture of its vents! Avics especially versis have big lips, so they're much easier to sex ventrically.

After I'm done unpacking, I'll put some pictures of my mature male versis, I'll show you thr boxing gloves and hooks on the mm diversipes. Lastly I'll show you the differences between the male and female vents.

Click to expand...

Thank you very much!! Do males have the "boxing gloves" before maturity?

No. Only mature males will have bulbs.

Sorry for all the questions everything I have is a sling other then my MF irminia and the only reason I know she's mature is because I bought her with an egg sac

No worries and ask away. You can't learn without asking questions. That's one of the bigest problems in this hobby, people don't help each other as much as they should and most of the experienced hobbyists hide all the knowledge or their really ignorant. The hobby can ONLY grow if knowledge is spread.

I've also noticed quite the amount of snooty people as we'll not naming any names

I've been in the hobby just over three years and I noticed these experienced hobbyists think they know it all.. they really don't and need to get their head out of their a** or get out of the hobby. I will help anyone I can especially new people. Just ignore and I guess they forgot they were a noob once too!

We have beginners coming here all the time, asking the same questions. It's good that they're interested, but many of them could also do more research on their own. After all, this is the internet. Answering the same questions weekly gets tedious to those that have been in the hobby longterm. Fills up the forum with the same old questions and answers over and over, and that constant repitition of basic info reduces the participation of experienced people, who are the backbone of the forum. They can provide info that no one else can. You don't want a forum of any kind dominated by beginners, because they can't answer many questions. You need a balance of old and new members. We're glad to see new faces, but understand that when we're answering the same question several times a week, it's not that exciting for us. We're volunteering to help. How many beginners use the Search function?

I think beginners are best advised to get a good book or two, particularly Stan Schult'z book, 3rd edition. Loaded with info, answers a lot of questions so that we can talk more about things than Tarantulas 101 here. Get up to speed that way, then ask questions. To me, that's being considerate to others. Yes, you get excited and want a fast answer, but so does the next guy, and the person after him, and then the forum's bogged down and beginners use this as their sole source of info. It doesn't make a lot of sense to constantly repeat the basic info that's found in any one of a number of books, or in this site's Search function. I understand that beginners want to be welcomed with open arms and treated with respect, no problem there. But they need to meet us halfway and not expect to be spoonfed info that they can easily find many other places. Over the course of the month, or year, it just jams up the forum, and many people here would like to get beyond the beginner basics. We need experts here, and a lot of them have dropped out over the years. So, beginners, we're glad to have you, that keeps our hobby going in the future. Show us that you think we, and the hobby, are worth you doing some homework for. You come here to learn (as we all do); show your 'teachers' some respect. Come prepared so we can talk on the next level.