G.rosea import ban?

yodaxtreme545 · May 5, 2015

Have any of you heard anything new about an import ban on G.rosea?

DVirginiana · May 5, 2015

No though I don't really keep up with it. As much of a pain as it can be I think I might be in favor of legislation that encouraged captive breeding. It can't be good to harvest them like they do. It'd jack prices up, but I'd also be willing to pay more for a spider I knew didn't have wild parasites and wasn't hurting the ecology of the natural habitat.

Poec54 · May 5, 2015

Should have happened 20 years ago. The poor things live in a harsh region and grow slow; how are they supposed to rebound after tens of thousands have been removed from the wild?

Storm76 · May 5, 2015

Poec54 said:
Should have happened 20 years ago. The poor things live in a harsh region and grow slow; how are they supposed to rebound after tens of thousands have been removed from the wild?

Fully agree! And it would finally encourage people to breed these in captivity.

DVirginiana · May 5, 2015

Who knows, in ten years I might actually have a reason to breed mine!

PRE66 6TART · May 5, 2015

Wait. They don't do this already(breed them)? Is it really easier/cheaper to go out and catch them in the wild and ship them around the world? Don't you basically have an infinite supply if you breed them?

LythSalicaria · May 5, 2015

PRE66 6TART said:
Wait. They don't do this already(breed them)? Is it really easier/cheaper to go out and catch them in the wild and ship them around the world? Don't you basically have an infinite supply if you breed them?

It's because of how slowly they grow. A lot of new keepers have no interest in slings because they want a big, hairy spider to show off right away; others simply don't have the patience to raise a G. rosea sling to adulthood because it takes so long, so the supply for adult specimens is much higher. (One could argue that people like this have no business being in the hobby, but that's another topic all-together)

This leads into a big problem dealers have to face - in an ideal world, they would raise up captive bred specimens and sell those, but I would imagine that it's just not feasible for many of them due to the amount of time they would have to dedicate to doing that for slow-growing species. Kinda one of those Rock-and-a-Hard-Place situations.

G. rosea probably won't be a common starter T any more if this legislation passes. It will be interesting to see what replaces it.

Biollantefan54 · May 5, 2015

Most people don't consider G. rosea/porteri a good starter tarantula as it is. G. pulchripes, Phrixotrichus, Brachypelma, and Euathlus will probably be better starters in the future (as most would recommend now)

BFE Pets · May 5, 2015

haha I came over to ask the very same question. it's blowing up facebook. I am actually happy about it and would love to see G rosea not imported any more. i've paired them several times and still have 50 or so left from the last one. This species has been over collected in my opinion. There are plenty in captivity to start a good breeding program.

cold blood · May 5, 2015

:clap: :clap: :clap:

I can't believe it took this long. :wall:

Biollantefan54 · May 5, 2015

This has apparently been going on for years though...still not sure if they actually enforce it. And yeah, ALL over my FB too.

truecreature · May 5, 2015

This is one import ban I'd be in favor of. With how painfully slowly these guys grow, they need all the help they can get in the wild. I'm amazed they even manage to survive as a species as it is.

DVirginiana · May 6, 2015

I guess I'm just weird but I like slow-growing species. Gives you more time with them! (Of course I have a couple animals that should outlive me so I realize not everyone feels that way) I'm probably getting my first foray into scorpions as a scorpling for that very reason. IMO people that can't handle waiting for a T to mature (especially when it's good for the wild ecosystems!) are probably in it for the wrong reasons. It's about the anticipation of having something really beautiful in your care for the next twenty years, not bragging rights.

Plus, my G. rosea is absolutely psychotic. I'm the kind of idiot who will grab a venomous snake to get a better look, so it doesn't bother me (ecologist problems...) but they really aren't the best beginner species anyway...

awiec · May 6, 2015

I'm all for a ban, we are saturated with G.rosea so a diverse and healthy captive population can be easily maintained. Also who knows? Maybe the CB rosea will be more beginner friendly as they are already used to our cycles here instead of the wild. Of course stimulus is probably needed to get them into breeding mode like any other species but for those who want a pet, having a spider already in sync with our seasons is better.

FireSpider · May 6, 2015

All I can find relating to this is a for sale ad on Imgur where the seller claims G. Rosea has had an export ban imposed. He cites no source on this, but uses it as a reason you should buy his tarantulas now, before they're all gone. After that the rumor spread to Reddit. The guy who made the initial post doesn't appear to be a well-known breeder and there's no citations anywhere. Considering the lack of sources, I wouldn't believe the rumor unless a better source comes out to confirm it.

Anyway, I'd love to see more captive bred G Rosea because they're my favorite T (for all the reasons other people get annoyed by them--I *like* their unpredictable weirdness and how slow they grow). But we probably won't have more until the ban discussed here actually happens.

Formerphobe · May 6, 2015

What I heard was that the country of Chile has banned export of ALL tarantulas, not just G rosea. The ban may include all inverts. I don't know if all the particulars are available yet.

Poec54 · May 6, 2015

PRE66 6TART said:
Is it really easier/cheaper to go out and catch them in the wild and ship them around the world

Right, and wholesale they're only a couple dollars. It's much easier for pet stores to sell adult spiders, so they carry roseas as nothing's cheaper for them. It has nothing to do with them being suitable for beginners. There are better choices for beginners, but they're only available in bulk as CBB slings and cost more.

HungryGhost · May 6, 2015

Excellent news if it's true! Nothing personal, but man will it ever cut down on posts by new members saying "Help! My rose hair won't eat."

Next I'd like to see an import ban on wild caught avics that end up in deplorable conditions at chain pet stores.

ratluvr76 · May 6, 2015

I think this is an excellent development... IF its true. I'm of the opinion that whenever possible we as a hobby should support captive bred populations over w/c. W/c will always have a place in the hobby, especially to establish cb populations of new species but once established in captivity, the harvesting of wild populations should almost completely cease in this species too. I'd also like it if lps were forced to make wiser decisions of what they will carry and making it more expensive for them will either make it so they don't carry them at all or make it cost effective to care for them properly.

vespers · May 6, 2015

HungryGhost said:
Nothing personal, but man will it ever cut down on posts by new members saying "Help! My rose hair won't eat."

Conversely, perhaps it would cause some more experienced keepers to treat G. rosea as "seriously" as they do other tarantula species. Since it will then have more "monetary value" and not be so easy to come by in most pet stores. Much like what has happened with emperor scorpions/P. imperator...

G.rosea import ban?

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