Tarantula Hawk Care?

[Ajohnson5263]

Now personally, i have never considered, or probably ever will, keeping a Tarantula Hawk as a pet. however, recently, a guy i follow on instagram and youtube that goes by afroherpkeeper has acquired one he wishes to keep. Upon showing of his new captive, he faced much backlash by the reptile community. Claiming that it's too risky, or he can't take care of it/ 'm fairly neutral in the debate.i will say that He knows very well the risks he takes by owning one, and proves to be very experienced keeper of animals (based on the fact he owns several venomous snakes). what is everyone thoughts on owning one of these, also what conditions would need to be met for successful captive rearing?

Heres a link to his Post : https://www.instagram.com/p/BncAH28glYG/?taken-by=afroherpkeeper

 

[chanda]

Tarantula hawks are beautiful and fascinating creatures that do fairly well in captivity. Despite their reputation for an insanely painful sting, they are actually quite docile and reluctant to sting unless threatened or provoked. I have kept them briefly (for several weeks at a time, to show my students) a number of times. I usually release them after a while, but I had one that I kept for the remainder of her life because her wings were badly damaged when I found her and she could not fly. She lived for several months in my care. (I believe it was June or early July when I found her, and she lived until maybe September or October.)

They are easy to take care of. I've kept them in mesh pop-up butterfly enclosures, with a bit of a branch for perching/hiding. For food I bent a paperclip to make an "S" shaped hook, then used it to hang halved grapes and orange slices from the side of the cage.

I like the pop-up enclosures because the softer sides make it less likely that they'll damage their wings when attempting to fly, but caution should be taken because they *can* potentially chew through the mesh. I've had freshly caught tarantula hawks chew the mesh sides of the small (5" or 6" diameter) pop-ups I use when collecting, and they have sometimes managed to make a small hole in the mesh, though none have escaped - so far. I have not observed them chewing on the mesh of the larger enclosure after I've transferred them - but if your friend goes that route, he should be aware of the possibility and keep an eye out for damage.

Here's a video of her eating out of my hand:

Of course, they are reputed to have a very painful sting, so your friend should be sure to keep his distance if she is agitated (as typically happens when they are first captured or if they are disturbed for a rehousing.) You can tell if she's agitated because she'll buzz her wings repeatedly and may give off a smell similar to burnt rubber. Fortunately, they calm down after a bit.

 

[pannaking22]

Yeah they do pretty well in captivity overall, but of course getting them to reproduce would be an incredible challenge. Other than that I feel like it's fairly standard wasp care, which chanda did a nice job of summarizing above. Good idea with the pop up cage too, I hadn't thought about that.

 

[Dovey]

Yes, it's when you get into the reproductive aspect of this creature that you run into trouble on this website.

 

[BenWilly]

Now personally, i have never considered, or probably ever will, keeping a Tarantula Hawk as a pet. however, recently, a guy i follow on instagram and youtube that goes by afroherpkeeper has acquired one he wishes to keep. Upon showing of his new captive, he faced much backlash by the reptile community. Claiming that it's too risky, or he can't take care of it/ 'm fairly neutral in the debate.i will say that He knows very well the risks he takes by owning one, and proves to be very experienced keeper of animals (based on the fact he owns several venomous snakes). what is everyone thoughts on owning one of these, also what conditions would need to be met for successful captive rearing?

Heres a link to his Post : https://www.instagram.com/p/BncAH28glYG/?taken-by=afroherpkeeper

I have no idea whatsoever , but had to chime in on 2 things, one, I recently got stung by my states version of a tarantula hawk, Entypus unifasciatus , on the side of my neck. I have been stung a lot in my life, never any reactions, but this sting was crazy painful ! My neck swelled, and under my chin. Stayed swollen and painful for 4 days. And two, old boy there on instagram has some amazing set ups ! Thanks for sharing the link !