Any Experience keeping Ebony Tarantulas?

The Centipede

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I visit my grandpa's ranch every month or so and during the fall we always come across wandering Ebony Tarantula males looking for a mate...and i was wondering if anyone has tried keeping them as a pet? and if it is legal? i wanted to try keeping one and i was wondering how well they do in captivity...Thanks
 

cold blood

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There are no laws protecting them, so collection is legal I'm fairly certain. That said, keep it to a minimum.

They are in the hobby and I've seen them on dealer lists before...I almost got one last fall with my P. cancerides slings.
 

Poec54

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The ones wandering around are adult males, and short-lived. The females are probably brown, and in burrows.
 

Cavedweller

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Poec is right. If you can get your hands on a female though, I'm sure they'll be a delight. I checked your pet list and I didn't see any Ts. I think Aphonos are great starter Ts. They're very easy to care for, generally slow and mellow, and in my experience they're out a lot of the time.
 

Beary Strange

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The females are more brown, very typical Aphonopelma looking. My girl is anything but slow and mellow though. She's never flicked a single hair but she threats/strikes readily and the slightest disturbance sends her into her burrow...My Poecs are calmer. In her defense, she is wild caught but she's also a long term captive and the only way she's really chilled out is that she stopped constantly attempting (and one time nearly succeeding) to escape. The first tank I gave her allowed for burrowing, however she never did so and the screen lid just seemed to goad her escape attempts, so I moved her to a Sterilite in a set up very similar to how one would keep a Gramm and she at least cut out the climbing and trying to get out. I will say if you're trying to catch one, be aware that they're very cautious and way faster than you think. And definitely don't use your hands. Mine spent the entire ride home trying to bite her way out of the cup and I don't doubt if I'd put my hands anywhere near her I'd have been tagged.
 
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Cavedweller

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Whoa, I've never heard of such a fierce-tempered Aphono! Did you give her a fitting name?
 

Poec54

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My girl is anything but slow and mellow though. She's never flicked a single hair but she threats/strikes readily and the slightest disturbance sends her into her burrow...My Poecs are calmer. In her defense, she is wild caught but she's also a long term captive and the only way she's really chilled out is that she stopped constantly attempting (and one time nearly succeeding) to escape.
In my experience, and I've had a lot of w/c's in the past decades, is that there's no consistent difference in temperaments between w/c and CBB. They run on instinct.
 

advan

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Whoa, I've never heard of such a fierce-tempered Aphono! Did you give her a fitting name?
Try getting them out of their burrows(in situ) during the day. A few of the dwarf species have quite defensive attitudes(small man's syndrome?).

OP: Location of the ranch will help ID the Aphonopelma you are seeing. There a many species in CA and they can look very similar to an untrained eye(or somewhat trained) and an exact(at least county) location will be needed.


See all these MM's? Could any of you ID them from just a picture accurately? ;) Clicky
 
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awiec

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In my experience, and I've had a lot of w/c's in the past decades, is that there's no consistent difference in temperaments between w/c and CBB. They run on instinct.
My most defensive spider is a CB specimen who's parents and probably grandparents were CB but my most gentle spider is a WC Thrixopelma. She is an exceptionally well tempered spider and is the only spider I've owned that I ever held (well the seller kinda just plopped her in my hands). Despite the fact that these are pretty simple animals they do have a wide range of attitudes and can swap through them in seconds.
 

Beary Strange

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In my experience, and I've had a lot of w/c's in the past decades, is that there's no consistent difference in temperaments between w/c and CBB. They run on instinct.
Well that's good to know. I always chalked her nasty attitude up to the shock of being removed from the wild, and figured it was my fault. Makes me feel a smidge better.

Whoa, I've never heard of such a fierce-tempered Aphono! Did you give her a fitting name?
I don't really name. I only have the one though so I couldn't say if this is truly normal or not. But I have heard that the dwarf Aphonos are defensive so maybe it's a West Coast Aphono thing?
 

Smokehound714

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It could be either A smithi, or A eutylenum. Both are found in that region. My money is on eutylenum, though.
 

Scrab

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I've kept a mature male during last November that a relative's friend was giving away under the misconception that it was female. they said they found it wandering around and kept it for three months then i took it in and it lived for maybe one to two months. it would become defensive and strike readily, didn't eat often, and was always trying to escape especially whenever i opened its container. it even tried to climb my tongs once.
 
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AphonopelmaTX

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Try getting them out of their burrows(in situ) during the day. A few of the dwarf species have quite defensive attitudes(small man's syndrome?).
Even large adult females of Aphonopelma hentzi will aggressively defend themselves while in their burrows if you attempt to prod them out. Day or night. Usually once they are out in the open they calm right down.
 

The Centipede

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It could be either A smithi, or A eutylenum. Both are found in that region. My money is on eutylenum, though.
well thanks for the ID... :)

---------- Post added 05-30-2015 at 02:50 PM ----------

Basically i don't care if the T's are aggressive i have a Scolopendra Subspines i think i can handle it basically i just wanted a free tarantula :)
 

Scrab

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if you find a female's burrow, take a pic and send it to me :cry: i'm starting to think i'll never find one where I live
 

The Centipede

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I've kept a mature male during last November that a relative's friend was giving away under the misconception that it was female. they said they found it wandering around and kept it for three months then i took it in and it lived for maybe one to two months. it would become defensive and strike readily, didn't eat often, and was always trying to escape especially whenever i opened its container. it even tried to climb my tongs once.
Hmm sounds vicious hahaha cool tho

---------- Post added 06-01-2015 at 03:32 PM ----------

if you find a female's burrow, take a pic and send it to me :cry: i'm starting to think i'll never find one where I live
If i do find one i will show ya for sure.
 
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