# nhandu chromatus



## nhojz (Jul 21, 2006)

hello guys... i have a nhandu chromatus, got "her" last week, she's about 3-3.5 inches... im not sure if she's a she... anyway, im just wondering why is her butt area is bald? according to the person who sold it to me, she just molted 2 weeks ago. anyone has an idea why is she getting bald? and i need info's on her, substrate? whether dry or slightly damp? i observed that she's always near the water dish... terrestrial? burrower? humidity? temp? slow grower or fast? max size? and why is she not webbing? and i mean not at all... I REALLY CANT FIND ANY CARE SHEET FOR A CHROMATUS. im amazed at her apetite... she can really eat... gave her 4mealworms for four days and she doesnt hesitate to eat...

here's some of her pic with the enclosure...
(3 inch DRY coco fiber)































OT:
huahini






minax (ready to ship)


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 21, 2006)

I have 3 of these spiders, I keep mine on dry substrate and a hide and a water dish, they are very hardy and easy to care for, I would recommend taking the rocks out of the water dish, its easier for the spider to drink from, the tank you have set up looks a bit large IMO and you may want to add some more substrate in case of a fall...


Regards, Mike


----------



## rosehaired1979 (Jul 21, 2006)

As for the baldness its probably been kicking hairs  I am not sure on the care because I have never had one


----------



## Nate (Jul 21, 2006)

The bald spots are due to urticating hairs. It’s a hair flicker. Regarding what the Pet Shop guy said about the molt its completely opposite. It will get new hairs to flick at you each molt. You can read more about it at the following link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urticating_hair

BTW regarding life style I classify them as opportunistic burrowers. This species is from Brazil. They tend to dig around to create a retreat but don’t live completely under ground. I use 80% coco fiber and 20% vermiculite mix. I do a light misting once every two weeks to get the substrate a little damp so it clumps a little easier for it to burrow in. From my experience it’s a very nervous species that I don’t recommend for handling. Pretty fast growers too! 

I would defiantly add at least 2 more inches of substrate to its cage.


----------



## Nate (Jul 21, 2006)

nhojz said:
			
		

> why is she not webbing?


From my experience they aren’t big web spinners. You can always find exceptions even within the same species. Mine just drops a few webs around its burrow to sense potential prey and that’s it.


----------



## nhojz (Jul 21, 2006)

Mike H. said:
			
		

> I have 3 of these spiders, I keep mine on dry substrate and a hide and a water dish, they are very hardy and easy to care for, I would recommend taking the rocks out of the water dish, its easier for the spider to drink from, the tank you have set up looks a bit large IMO and you may want to add some more substrate in case of a fall...
> 
> 
> Regards, Mike



yeah actually its too big for the chromatus, th enclosure is supposed to be for my g. rosea which will be arriving in the end of this month, hopefully... the chromatus was not on my budget but fortunately she was sold for only $35, so i bought her and placed her temporary in the g rosea's enclosure.. maybe by tomorrow ill buy a new enclosure for her... thanks for the replies... keep it coming...!


----------



## Amanda (Jul 22, 2006)

My itty bitty chromatus grows like a weed and will take down any prey, no matter what the size.  They are among the smallest when they hatch, with 1500-2000+ slings per egg sac, and grow to 8"-9", which is a pretty big spread, so the have to grow fast.  I got mine at 1/4" in February, and it is now 1 1/2"!  

My little one burrows quite a bit.  I housed him/her in a jar about 5" in diameter with 6"+ of substrate, water dish and hide, and it burrowed all the way to the bottom against the glass.  It would spend all night burrowing... bringing up a mouthful at a time and distributing it so evenly over the surface of the substrate, that the ONLY way I could tell that earth was moving was that the water dish disappeared.  

I stuck a scallop shell (ordinary beach shell) about halfway into the substrate and made a dent under it.  That was all it took to spark the burrowing frenzy in that spot.

The tidbit that I found pretty informative about them was something I read saying that N. chromatus burrow/hide out alot until about 4" in size.  Then they become much bolder and stay out almost constantly.  Mine was quick to hide early on, but he/she seems to have gotten used to the daily activity and doesn't even disappear when I pull the lid off to refil the water.

I packed the substrate slightly moist when I set up the new house, then let it dry out.  After that, I only use a water dish.

Congrats on your new addition!  I can't wait till mine starts showing its colors! :worship:


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 22, 2006)

Amanda said:
			
		

> They are among the smallest when they hatch, with 1500-2000+ slings per egg sac, and grow to 8"-9", which is a pretty big spread,
> 
> They do not get 8 to 9 inches, they will max out around 5.5 to 6 inches...
> 
> Regards, Mike


----------



## nhojz (Jul 22, 2006)

Mike H. said:
			
		

> Amanda said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 22, 2006)

nhojz said:
			
		

> Mike H. said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## nhojz (Jul 23, 2006)

Mike H. said:
			
		

> nhojz said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## Code Monkey (Jul 23, 2006)

nhojz said:
			
		

> yeah actually its too big for the chromatus, th enclosure is supposed to be for my g. rosea which will be arriving in the end of this month, hopefully...


That enclosure (looks like a 10 gal tank) is too big for much of anything short of a full grown chaco or L. parahybana AND it's set up to encourage climbing, a bad, bad idea for terrestrial Ts if ever there was one. There are very few tarantulas that I would ever house in anything bigger than a 5.5 gal tank; for the most part, 10 gallons are for other animals, not tarantulas.




> one reason i bought her aside from the price, is because of her max size, according to the person who sold it to me, they grow upto 8 inches... huhuhu  thanks by the way...


Nhandu will top out in the 6" vicinity. Sure, there may have been someone, somewhere sporting an 8" female, but it would be a very unusual specimen. Besides, once you get a taste of Nhandu attitude and hair, you'll be thankful she's only 5-6". My nastiest spider is a female N. coloratovillosus, she's always an adrenaline rush to do *anything* with.


----------



## nhojz (Jul 23, 2006)

Code Monkey said:
			
		

> That enclosure (looks like a 10 gal tank) is too big for much of anything short of a full grown chaco or L. parahybana AND it's set up to encourage climbing, a bad, bad idea for terrestrial Ts if ever there was one. There are very few tarantulas that I would ever house in anything bigger than a 5.5 gal tank; for the most part, 10 gallons are for other animals, not tarantulas.
> 
> 
> 
> Nhandu will top out in the 6" vicinity. Sure, there may have been someone, somewhere sporting an 8" female, but it would be a very unusual specimen. Besides, once you get a taste of Nhandu attitude and hair, you'll be thankful she's only 5-6". My nastiest spider is a female N. coloratovillosus, she's always an adrenaline rush to do *anything* with.



just like what i said, the enclosure is supposed to be for my adult g. rosea, she will be arriving next week hopefully, in the mean time the chromatus is staying there, im still short in cash as of now, the chromatus doesnt climb anyway, she always stays inside the cave... i am observing her from 12 am to 5am,hehe the enclosure is just at my study table so i can see her all the time and i go to sleep usually around 5am due to requirements... thanks for the advice... really appreciate it, now i feel really worried on the chromatus maybe she'll climb and fall... huhu... 

KEEP IT COMING!!! 

THANKS!


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 23, 2006)

nhojz said:
			
		

> Mike H. said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## Code Monkey (Jul 23, 2006)

nhojz said:
			
		

> just like what i said, the enclosure is supposed to be for my adult g. rosea


And "just like what i said", it's still too big for it. Go ahead and put a G. rosea in there, you'll *probably* be fine, but it's not really any less too big for the rosea than the N. chromatus juvenile this thread is about.


----------



## Scorp guy (Jul 23, 2006)

Code Monkey said:
			
		

> And "just like what i said", it's still too big for it. Go ahead and put a G. rosea in there, you'll *probably* be fine, but it's not really any less too big for the rosea than the N. chromatus juvenile this thread is about.


come to think of it, in size comparison, it does look a bit big.....even for an adult rosea.:?


----------



## Thoth (Jul 23, 2006)

For the size issues those claiming a 7-8 inch legspan maybe confusing it with an A.geniculata which can get that big and look similiar but have a black carapace.


----------



## Lover of 8 legs (Jul 23, 2006)

Maybe those who have a size of 7"-8" were mixed up with the N coloratovillosus. I have a female juvi and she's 5" now & growing (rapidly)!!!


----------



## nhojz (Jul 25, 2006)

*molt*

how wil be their moulting rate be? i min in a year? do they moult 3 times a year? more? less? for a 3 incher chromatus? what is the rate? every how many months? is eating habit a factor? i mean if you tend to feed them all the time, do the moulting process will be fast approaching? pardon my ignorance... thanks!


----------



## Mike H. (Jul 25, 2006)

The more any spider is fed and the warmer they are kept will effect how often they molt...

Regards, Mike


----------



## nhojz (Aug 1, 2006)

*now whats the prob?*

so i followed your advice to rehouse my chromatus, her new enclosure's size is 12x12x12, wit 4inch of substr8, slightly damp cocofiber... with the previous enclosure i noticed that she always stayed near the water dish so i concluded that she want kinda wet surroundings or substrate, now in her new enclosure with slightly damp substrate she always stays in the top of the bamboo... im so confused... what's wrong? and notice her abdomen is getting darker compared to the previous pix? is this signs of pre-molt? fed her last 4days ago, and i just rehoused her so did not fed her yet to give her time to settle down... 

here are the pix:


----------



## verry_sweet (Aug 1, 2006)

Nice tanks  . However I do not see any vent holes and if the window receives a lot of sun light they should be moved. The substrate should be allowed to completely dry out as well. Steph


----------



## maarrrrr (Aug 1, 2006)

thats still way too high a tank. id get rid of the bamboo, your t could fall to its death. you could put it on its side. also, that tank doesn't look like it has much airflow.


----------



## nhojz (Aug 1, 2006)

*air flow*

there's too much air ventilation at the sides of the tank, i personaly designed the  ventilation of the tank, as for the sunlight, next 2 my window is a wall so it will never be expose to sunlight... 

so, is the reason for her to stay in top because the damp substrate? all i thought they like it slightly damp? hmmmm....


----------



## Mike H. (Aug 1, 2006)

Once she gets use to the new tank and the substrate dries out she will come down, I keep both my females on dry substrate and a water dish and a hide...the tank does look a little high, a kritter keeper works great for juvies IMO....

Regards, Mike


----------



## nhojz (Aug 2, 2006)

*molt?*

i noticed her abdomen became darker compared to the previous pic... what does this implies?

current status: 

	
	
		
		
	


	





2weeks ago:


----------



## nhojz (Aug 5, 2006)

*waaahhh...*

my chromatus is now on her back, for about 40mins, im panicking... its my 1st time... im scared maybe it wont be a success because i just changed her substrate few hours ago because she's not comfortable with the damp cocofiber, so i changed to dry ones... maybe she didn't settled yet, don't know what to do... she's the favorite of my girlfriend... she didn't even make a silk mat on where she will be molting... when i transfered her maybe after an hour she flip on its back already... waaahhh...


----------



## Scorp guy (Aug 5, 2006)

just step back, and dont toch her. Shes probably molting. It can take up to several hours for a molt. Also, i wouldnt advise changing the substrate that often, unless it truly becomes a problem.


----------



## nhojz (Aug 5, 2006)

*yup she's molting*



			
				Scorp guy said:
			
		

> just step back, and dont toch her. Shes probably molting. It can take up to several hours for a molt. Also, i wouldnt advise changing the substrate that often, unless it truly becomes a problem.



i changed her substrate because she never stepped down on the on the damp substrate, she keeps on staying on the top of the bamboo, i guess i made the right decision changing the substrate because as i placed her on the newly change substrate, she immediately went to the hide on relaxed... thanks sir...


----------



## nhojz (Aug 5, 2006)

*good sign*

she's halfway done... its been 2hours... waahhh... i hate my lil sister, she got my  digital camera... cant take some photos... damn!!! she's having a picnic... hope it will be a success...


----------



## Code Monkey (Aug 5, 2006)

Scorp guy said:
			
		

> just step back, and dont toch her. Shes probably molting. It can take up to several hours for a molt. Also, i wouldnt advise changing the substrate that often, unless it truly becomes a problem.


As he said, never disturb a moulting tarantula except in two instances:

1) It's a large juvenile or adult and is beginning the moult right side up. You can *gently* roll the spider onto its side, otherwise the chances of the spider getting legs stuck while moulting is increased.

2) You know it's already stuck. While they may lay on their back for as long as 18 hours in my experience, once the actual moult gets under way (the carapace is the first thing to "pop off"), it will only take a few hours, maybe a little longer if it's an older spider. But, when you know that the carapace is already off and multiple hours have passed with nothing changing, you'll have to make the call on whether to intervene. There are some good descriptions of spiders being stuck in moults and techniques you can use to try and free them in the Tarantula Keepers Guide by Shultz & Shultz.

If you only think there's something wrong, stay the heck away, you'll likely do more harm than good by messing with a spider you're being paranoid about. They have been doing this for millions and millions of years all on their own with nobody to aid them. 

The most important thing to remember is that moulting is NOT a big deal in spite of the, imo, completely wrong impression given by the posting habits of newer keepers (e.g. the "Whoo! He moulted successfully!" type posts). I've had one bad moult, and that was a sling that was shipped while in pre-moult and lost multiple legs and later died. OTOH, I've had two juveniles successfully moult in transit while packed in shipping materials. Nobody has ever had a bad moult under my care ever and I do absolutely nothing to help the process; no misting, no raising humidity, nothing. I have had spiders that die a short time after moulting, and the cause isn't clear, but there is likely nothing that a human could have done to help avoid it (the hypothesis is that they can easily tear their cuticle post-moult and bleed out slowly although I've never seen evidence of this, just a curled up dead spider). But, again, there's pretty much nothing you can do, so just relax and see what happens.

------

The second part of scorp guy's advice is dead on as well: don't change substrate, pretty much ever without a good reason - it just stresses the tarantula. Moist substrate dries if you stop dumping water in it, so leave it alone unless you were doing a bad imitation of the quicksand pits that always showed up on 70s action shows. Your spider is not going to be ruined by spending a few days/weeks clinging to the side of the tank until the substrate dries if that's what was actually bothering it in the first place. If you know it's a decent substrate, wait for the spider to get used to it, don't keep changing it hoping the spider will suddenly approve of one. With many spiders, you can move them into a new tank with exactly the same substrate, only new, and they'll act like you put them onto some alien compound.


----------



## nhojz (Aug 5, 2006)

*Success!*

and it was a success... it took her 2 and a half... im so happy... she's still on her back regaining her strength... too bad the camera is not here... my c. huahini is also in pre-molt i think because she's not on her burrow for the whole day and she seems to be not active... she has not eaten for a week... good day to all


----------



## nhojz (Aug 5, 2006)

*thanks*

code monkey, thanks for the advice... it really helped a lot... i was only concern on the chromatus for her approaching molt, on my mind was her molting prcoess is fast approaching and the substrate will dry for a long time so i changed it before she'll molt, and i was right on time i gues... 

thanks guys... ill be posting pic as soon as my camera is available...


----------



## Mushroom Spore (Aug 5, 2006)

Did you ever change the enclosure? The way it was set up in those pictures, you are cruising for a tarantula dead from a fall.


----------



## nhojz (Aug 5, 2006)

Mushroom Spore said:
			
		

> Did you ever change the enclosure? The way it was set up in those pictures, you are cruising for a tarantula dead from a fall.



yup i already changed the setup, i added 4 inches more of substrate... so now, on a 12x12x12 enclosure, the substrate is 8inches, 4inches freespace height... she's still on her hide resting i guess... she'll be fine right?


----------



## Amanda (Aug 6, 2006)

She'll be fine.  No need to worry.


----------



## maarrrrr (Aug 6, 2006)

my little chromatus just molted too. s/he's starting to get those stripes.


----------



## Amanda (Aug 6, 2006)

Mine molted 2 days ago... gained a whole inch (now 2"), and earned her adult colors!!


----------



## rospin (Aug 7, 2006)

nhojz,

can you show a photo of all the sides of your tank for the chromatus?


----------



## nhojz (Aug 8, 2006)

*here's my baby...*

she's now in the 4inch mark... she started roaming around her enclosure...



















silly question, when will she molt again? let say powerfeeding factor? estimations? 3months?


----------



## rospin (Aug 8, 2006)

i thought you said you had ventilation on the sides of your enlosure?


all i see is glass


----------



## nhojz (Aug 8, 2006)

*...*

yup there is... its not quite visible in the pic but there is, 2 sides have almost 1/3 of an inch clearance for the length of 12 inches(visible in the first pic)... the top cover is made of screen, i only use the glass cover for display purposes which is seldom use... the glass cover however has a clearance of 1/4inch...


----------



## Lorgakor (Aug 8, 2006)

The set up looks much better for the spider now. She is quite the beauty! Glad to hear that the molt went okay!


----------



## V3i HoN6 (Aug 9, 2006)

rospin said:
			
		

> i thought you said you had ventilation on the sides of your enlosure?
> 
> all i see is glass


Yeah, its clearly seen 2 ventilation "bar" on the first pics.
Very nice tanks and set up.
I never have space to put such a big tank like this in my room.

Luckily my chromatus just a 2 inch juvie.


----------



## nhojz (Aug 9, 2006)

*...*



			
				V3i HoN6 said:
			
		

> Yeah, its clearly seen 2 ventilation "bar" on the first pics.
> Very nice tanks and set up.
> I never have space to put such a big tank like this in my room.
> 
> Luckily my chromatus just a 2 inch juvie.



thanks! my room is actually small, i just love my T's and i dont want them to be left anywhere else... hehe... all my 4 enclosures are with that size, and whats really funny is im sharing my room with my father and he is scared of my t's... hehe...


----------



## nhojz (Aug 9, 2006)

*sex*

guys, can you help confirm if my chromatus is really a female... i have no idea on how to sex my t's... the who sold it tome told me she's a she... can u confirm it?
sad to say her molt skin is really ruined...

ventral shots...













*sorry for the blurred pix... thanks again to all!


----------



## tarsier (Aug 9, 2006)

looks female to me


----------

