Recommendations on a First Tarantula

I've been looking into Different species Of tarantula, and I'd like recommendation of some. I Like the reds and the blacks like the Mexican Red Knees, Mexican Fire Legs, and The Costa Rican Tiger Rump. I Have never owned a tarantula, But I do own a scorpion. I'd like something that is (If Possible) black with red, or just has bright colors. And is somewhat active. Any Tips on the owning a Tarantula would very much be appreciated as well. Thanks.

KiruSama said:

I've been looking into Different species Of tarantula, and I'd like recommendation of some. I Like the reds and the blacks like the Mexican Red Knees, Mexican Fire Legs, and The Costa Rican Tiger Rump. I Have never owned a tarantula, But I do own a scorpion. I'd like something that is (If Possible) black with red, or just has bright colors. And is somewhat active. Any Tips on the owning a Tarantula would very much be appreciated as well. Thanks.

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from that description you dont want a tarantula lol

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=40987

Here's a good thread to read....good luck on your choice!

IME Black and red=not very active, but very nice to look at. My C. cyanopubescens on the other hand is very brightly colored and often active. They are much faster and more likely to fling hairs than any of my Brachys (red and black) however. Good luck with your choice, and like Shell_Baby said, read that thread about starter Ts.

KiruSama said:

I've been looking into Different species Of tarantula, and I'd like recommendation of some. I Like the reds and the blacks like the Mexican Red Knees, Mexican Fire Legs, and The Costa Rican Tiger Rump. I Have never owned a tarantula, But I do own a scorpion. I'd like something that is (If Possible) black with red, or just has bright colors. And is somewhat active. Any Tips on the owning a Tarantula would very much be appreciated as well. Thanks.

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The link that Shell_Baby gave you is extremely helpful, that should answer a lot of the questions you have. I was just about to mention C. cyaneopubescens (Green Bottle-Blue) and jen650s beat me to it! If you're looking for a tarantula that you can handle easily, although they're not brilliantly colored, you also might want to look at G. rosea (Chilean Rose) and G. aureostriata (Chaco Golden-Knee). Those two are extremely hardy, are easy to take care of, rarely kick hairs and have super-sweet dispositions. Hope this helps!

-Sarah

as far as being very active, no . they can be at times and deppending on what species you have . a good colorful starter?
id go with a pinktoe tarantula.
but.
make sure you look up a care sheet for ones your looking at , make sure its not a burrowing type , i have a few but there not good starter because you wont see it to much if you house it right . and make sure you check if its and old world species. those ones mostly are in a bad mood all the time. and i wouldnt recomend a begginer to get one ..

Rochelle said:

"active tarantulas" do not exist...unless it's a male looking to mate. Then he dies soon.
If you MUST have a Tarantula...check out the Grammostola aureostriata. They are somewhat "active" for a T....very beautiful and tend to be friendlier than most.....

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Agreed. My first and only T's so far (due to winter) are a b. smithi and the g. aureostriata. I was still kinda afraid of them for a while after I got them, but I recently re-housed my g. aureostriata and she was such a sweetheart about me bugging her and moving her around I'm pretty comfortable with them now. Not a single threatening move on her part while I was poking and prodding. She does seem to kinda active, she is usually out in the open at least.

lol Like I said New to tarantula's. Active or not I still like tarantula's, and am still very interested in them. Oh and What Ever Tarantula I do end up getting Will Be taken proper care of.

personal experience

chilean rose's are often active, mine moseys about her cage quite regularly, and you can get the red phase rose hairs that are actually quite stunning to look at i think. also of course b. smithi (red knees), and b. vagans (red rumps) are going to be very pretty. my b. smithi female is always out in the open, but doesnt' move around that much. she's a very nice T though, never kicks hairs or goes for threat poses. what actually you may be looking for is a Lasiodora Parahybana (salmon pink bird eater). they get quite large, up to 10" in some cases with the females, and are always out moving around they're cage. they're large, they're quite visually appealing too, and they never turn down food. you CAN handle them, but... they have big attitudes and bigger appetites so they might mistake your hand for food and try to devour it once in a while. mine is very fun to watch though, once she got out of the sling stage she has always been very active around the tank, if i make noise in the room she'll run over to see what happened and such. pretty great display T in my opinion.

Active and colored T's:

-Chromatopelma Cyaneopubecens (greenbottle blue tarantula)


-Avicularia Versicolor (antilles pinktoe tarantula)


These two are really good to start. Well colored, very active and also very docile.

Rose hair isn't too bad for beginners but its not well colored, dont eat that much, and grows very very slowly. Same thing for de brachypelmas, but these ones ares more colored (black and red)

Get both: Br. smithi and Gr. aureostriata. Excellent starting T,s. Smithi will give you black and red. Aureostriata is large and very good looking. Both are very docile and not expensive. Since it never stops on one T,s it will save you on shipping cost.

Smok.

Anyways, the most important thing if it'S your first T: NO ASIAN OR AFRICAN SPECIE!!!

These are really nice and active, but they are also fast, agressive and more venomous in opposite of new world T's who are generally more docile and a lot less venomous.

You start with a new world T and when you are ease whit it, you can lok for an old world T.

Any new world tarantula will do.

Above pictures speak for themselfs. So if you buy Versi and GBB on top of the two I mentioned before you will save even more on future shipping cost.

Smok.

Morkelsker said:

-Chromatopelma Cyaneopubecens (greenbottle blue tarantula)

very docile.

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Hahahahahahahahaha no.

They may not tend to be actually AGGRESSIVE, but that only means that when you so much as twitch near them, they zoom away from you instead of at your face. Very edgy, nervous, fast species. Like to kick hairs, too.

Any pictures you see of people handling this species are some combination of a freakishly docile *individual spider* and an experienced tarantula handler.

Thanks for so many responses! I'm really like the Green Bottled Blue. It's very Pretty. The Antilles Pinktoe Is attractive too! Some many choices! Thanks again for your help.

If it's a first, it should definitely be a docile species. The bigger question is how much are you willing to spend? There are tons of great long living, easy to care for docile species that can be "plain" looking, or very nicely colored, some cost more or less. All these are just as good for the beginner as they are for the seasoned expert. I'll name a few that are easy to care for and generally very friendly, good for anybody to keep. Personally I'd really advise buying an adult or at least a sub-adult, especially if its your first.

If you want something less expensive, usually in the $15 to $40 range, you can try:

- Chilean Rose Tarantula/Grammostola Rosea
- Curly haired Tarantula/Brachypelma Albopilosum
- Texas Tan Tarantula/Aphonopelma hentzi
- Costa Rican Zebra Tarantula/Aphonopelma Seemani(these don't live quite as long as the others, and are occasionally a bit defensive)

If you want something kind of in a mid or upper-mid range, say in the $40 to $120 area, you can try:

- Giant Golden Knee Tarantula/Grammostola Aureostriata(some of my all time favorites. Extremely friendly, slow moving, beautiful, and can get huge, over 8 inches)
- Mexican Blonde Tarantula/Aphonopelma Chalcodes
- Costa Rican Tigerrump/Cyclosternum Fasciatum(these are often skittish and nervous, but very rarely bite)
- Mexican Black Velvet/Brachypelma Vagans(These can be a bit defensive, though my two are docile, but I'd still say they're suitable for a beginner)

Now if you're willing to fork out a lot of money, $120 and up, there are several beautiful and docile tarantulas that would suit the needs of both beginner and expert:

- Mexican Red Knee Tarantula/Brachypelma Smithi
- Brazillian Black Tarantula/Grammostola Pulchra
- Mexican True Red Leg/Brachypelma Emilia
- Aphonopelma Bicoloratum(forgot the common name)

All of these spiders are relatively easy to care for and similar in their needs or requirements. Of course there are several more, but these are just a few. All great spiders though, extremely cute and very rewarding pets.