# Diggin' T's Out



## Arachnohamilton (Feb 2, 2010)

Hey everybody....

I like to know what's the best the way to dig out a tarantula out of his/her burrow in the wild??

Can i digg her out??

Can I use a Cricket like a stick rod??

I've seen that some of you use water to brign them out (I think I saw a thread 'bout a. moderatum digged out using just water.

What do u think???

Thnks a lot!!


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## Moltar (Feb 3, 2010)

I've never been T hunting in the wild but... I think you should post this in "Tarantula Questions and Discussions". It's the more appropriate forum for the question and they get a LOT more traffic there.


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## skippy (Feb 3, 2010)

you *can* dig it out but that doesn't mean you should. even if you are planning on bringing it home, digging will permanently destroy the burrow, making it impossible for another T to move in. tickling or flooding are much less destructive.


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## Texas Blonde (Feb 9, 2010)

Flooding burrows with water is quite effective, it brings the spider right to the top.  But that doesnt mean they will come all the way out.  I like to have something in place to block their retreat into the burrow before I flood them.  

Tickling also works very well, but I have the best luck with it at night, when a T is willing to come all the way out of the burrow in search of food.  To tickle the spider out, use a long blade of grass, and do exactly as it sounds: tickle the spider, haha.


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## Noexcuse4you (Feb 10, 2010)

Digging out T's is a painstaking and delicate procedure.  It seriously took me and Codewilster (I think) at least an hour to dig one out.  Never again!

Get some water and just trickle it down there and they should come up.  Even better, do it at night.  They'll fly right out!

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## Hornets inverts (Mar 6, 2010)

any idea if this would work with the old world t's? Over here in aus the only method really known is to dig the t out which as you guys have stated completly destroys the burrow. Would it be different with the old world species?


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## skippy (Mar 6, 2010)

never been to the land of oz but flooding should work with any semi-vertical burrow... i would think anyway


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## cacoseraph (Mar 7, 2010)

personally, i really enjoy digging bugs out.  and before ppl get their knickers in a twist... i routinely see rabbits and gophers leaving bigger scars than i do.

oh, and though this doesn't apply to all areas of the world, most of the areas i find t's and other mygs in are just filthy with all kinds of holes. there is NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO shortage of holes. it is not like a tarantula burrow is this madly unique thing. they take over rodent burrows sometimes, for pete's sake

also, if you repack the hole you dig out there pretty much is no lasting scar and you avoid starting an erosion point




am i saying you should dig a cubic meter pit to get a spider 20 times a day? no, of course not... but it usually ain't like that, ime


further, flooding is only really an option if you are in certain areas.  too porous of soil and you are just plain out of luck.  if you have to pack your water in 8lbs a G adds up REAL freakin fast.  tickling *can* work, i've done it plenty before... but is much much better in dim or no light... and some bugs are all but unticklable




also, i really haven't talked about digging at all, in specifics.  depending on the  soil, the orientation of the ground your digging in, the plants in the soil you are digging in, and other factors it can take about 10 seconds or 10 hours to dig something out.  where i live and hunt a lot there are some gnarly rocks absolutely permeating the ground... and sometimes this is compounded with all kinds of roots and other crap to contend with, also.  i actually carry a pair of gardening shears to cut roots with when i am digging out bugs =P  in addition to the rocks and roots and what not making digging slower and more difficult they also make it more dangerous for the bug you are after. i have, a few times out of all the times i dug up bugs, killed or mangled the critter i was after. one time i sort of half cut a scorp in half with a root i was trying to break.  that is partly what prompted the shears purchase.  another time a rock shifted and squished my target

also, even if you have seen the bug in its hole, that doesn't mean you are going to catch it!  if it is plugged into a rodent burrow network, if it is plugged into a rock void network, or if you just plain lose the burrow trail then you are not going to recover your target.  i really hate losing confirmed targets... i can't just repack (and thus completely plug and block) the hole when i know there is still the bug inside. usually what i do then is find enough good size rocks to plug the hole i made to big animals, but still let the target get back out to either live in their newly modified burrow or go start again.


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