GBB - What Size do Males Mature at?

Envoirment

Arachnosquire
Joined
Feb 3, 2016
Messages
93
Hi everyone, so my Green Bottle Blue/Chromatopelma cyaneonpubescens molted 2 weeks ago and it's a male. I'm just wondering what size do they mature at? Mine appears to be around the 3.5" mark in DLS (it was 3" for sure before the molt) and its adult colouration has set in. I assume it's mature or is a molt or two away from being so. Unfortunately I can't get any pictures of it as it's hidden away at the moment.
 

louise f

Arachnoangel
Joined
Jul 8, 2012
Messages
936
Hi everyone, so my Green Bottle Blue/Chromatopelma cyaneonpubescens molted 2 weeks ago and it's a male. I'm just wondering what size do they mature at? Mine appears to be around the 3.5" mark in DLS (it was 3" for sure before the molt) and its adult colouration has set in. I assume it's mature or is a molt or two away from being so. Unfortunately I can't get any pictures of it as it's hidden away at the moment.
CIMG6212.JPG
This is my couple mating attempt, the male is in the top. Almost as big as the female.
Still waiting for a sac. :)
 

Casey K

Arachnoknight
Joined
Nov 12, 2013
Messages
247
I don't think size is really a factor in maturity. I believe number of molts plays the most part.....any other opinions on this? A friend of mine threw this out there (thanks Steve ;) ) and it does make sense because you can have a MM GBB that's 3" or a MM GBB that's 4.25", lol.....
 

Poec54

Arachnoemperor
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Messages
4,745
I don't think size is really a factor in maturity. I believe number of molts plays the most part.....any other opinions on this? A friend of mine threw this out there (thanks Steve ;) ) and it does make sense because you can have a MM GBB that's 3" or a MM GBB that's 4.25", lol.....


I've seen big differences in male sizes from recently maturing wild caught specimens, so it's not a phenomena limited to captive-raised tarantulas. It may be a reproductive strategy, maybe the big ones are better able to fight off predators, maybe the smaller ones can hide better. If a species takes both approaches, it's odds of mature females being paired up may be higher. I've also had several males from the same sac mature close together, with a few slower ones that mature months later; again it could give that species another shot at producing young that year, if the first batch wasn't fully successful, either due to drought, floods, cold, heat, predation, etc.
 
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