# Care sheet assistance request for Pamphobeteus sp Machalla “Purple bloom”



## MsBuzzKill (Sep 24, 2014)

Hello, everyone.

I have seen pics of the gorgeous "Purple Bloom" T which sparked my interest and now I see that <edit>.  I prefer to know about the basic species care before I ever purchase any T, but I am having a terrible time finding any online guidance on this T (any info I do find seems to be for the Pink Bloom, and I don't want to assume that the care would be the same for the two Ts unless I hear from those with expertise that it is so). 

Can someone please help me with the following?
-arid or humidity preferring T?
-general temperament (e.g., calm, skittish, defensive, aggressive, schizo)?
-approximate ultimate adult size?
-is it an opportunistic or obligate burrower? (would help determine substrate depth)
-anything "odd" I may not be aware of and need to know if purchasing this T?

Thanks for your input!


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## awiec (Sep 24, 2014)

geekypam74 said:


> Hello, everyone.
> 
> I have seen pics of the gorgeous "Purple Bloom" T which sparked my interest and now I see that <edit>.  I prefer to know about the basic species care before I ever purchase any T, but I am having a terrible time finding any online guidance on this T (any info I do find seems to be for the Pink Bloom, and I don't want to assume that the care would be the same for the two Ts unless I hear from those with expertise that it is so).
> 
> ...


You care for this pamph like any other one. I would provide a half log/cork bark hide, a full watercap and I wet the sub about once a week. They don't like it swampy but they prefer higher humidity and are more active at night than day. I know some can be defensive to the point of being aggressive but most will prefer to be left alone and will stay in their hide. They have a very voracious appetite so if you see them reject food then you know that they will be going into pre-molt or they are really really full. I have no idea how big machalla gets but most pamphs will get to 7 inches, the range for the genus is 6-9. FYI the males are the ones who get very colorful but the females of the species you're interested in do keep some nice color; most female pamphs are brown/black.

Reactions: Like 3


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## Poec54 (Sep 24, 2014)

awiec said:


> You care for this pamph like any other one. I would provide a half log/cork bark hide, a full watercap and I wet the sub about once a week. They don't like it swampy but they prefer higher humidity and are more active at night than day. I know some can be defensive to the point of being aggressive but most will prefer to be left alone and will stay in their hide. They have a very voracious appetite so if you see them reject food then you know that they will be going into pre-molt or they are really really full. I have no idea how big machalla gets but most pamphs will get to 7 inches, the range for the genus is 6-9. FYI the males are the ones who get very colorful but the females of the species you're interested in do keep some nice color; most female pamphs are brown/black.


Thanks.  There's about half a dozen basic ways to keep T's; needing a care sheet for every species is crazy, especially since most of them have questionable advice.  You vary substrate moisture and depth, ventilation, and cage height.  High elevation species don't like high temps.  What else can you adjust?  With the big South Americans, you're varying soil moisture, everything else is the same.  With all the Asian terrestrials I've owned or ever heard of, the care is the same.  Keep desert/savannah species on dry substrate.  All Avics seem to need the same basic conditions, and the other arboreals like it a little more humid. All T's like a cork slab for a retreat, whether obligate or opportunistic burrower, or arboreal.  Not that many combinations.  Problems arise when you give extreme conditions (moisture and ventilation-wise) to a species that likes something more towards the other end of the spectrum.  There's a happy medium of conditions that works very well for most T's.

Reactions: Like 1


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## MsBuzzKill (Sep 24, 2014)

Thank you very much!  Sounds like a T I can comfortably deal with.


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## Poec54 (Sep 24, 2014)

geekypam74 said:


> Thank you very much!  Sounds like a T I can comfortably deal with.


Indeed you can.  Pamphos are tough and always hungry.  Great genus.

Reactions: Like 2


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## MsBuzzKill (Sep 24, 2014)

Poec54 said:


> Indeed you can.  Pamphos are tough and always hungry.  Great genus.


Sling has now been purchased from Stamps Tarantulas and it should arrive next week with my 5" female B.vagans (she apparently just molted last night and will need to appropriately recover before being shipped). Very excited and really appreciate your help.


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## awiec (Sep 24, 2014)

geekypam74 said:


> Sling has now been purchased from Stamps Tarantulas and it should arrive next week with my 5" female B.vagans (she apparently just molted last night and will need to appropriately recover before being shipped). Very excited and really appreciate your help.


I was thinking about grabbing some of those pamphs from stamps too since I've been pleased with his service before and the slings I've received were very alive and alert when I opened the vials.


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## Arachnomaniac19 (Sep 24, 2014)

I'll go by what I've heard and done with my specimen:

-Humidity just like any other pampho.
-Very skittish but not very agressive. A massive hair kicker though.
-Not to sure but I'd guess 8" or so.
-Opportunistic burrower. Mine hasn't even tried yet and I've had her for almost a year.
-It will turn very gold when coming to a molt.

Reactions: Like 1


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## dredrickt (Sep 24, 2014)

Pampho's are among my favorite.  The attack they perform is like a 100% knockout balls to the wall shot.  One of my Nigricolors will chase down prey, so far one cricket has the record at two full laps around the deli cup before he lost the race, LOL.


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## Arachnomaniac19 (Sep 24, 2014)

I just posted a mature male in my photo thread. If you want to see it click on the link below.

Reactions: Like 1


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## cold blood (Sep 24, 2014)

dredrickt said:


> Pampho's are among my favorite.  The attack they perform is like a 100% knockout balls to the wall shot.  One of my Nigricolors will chase down prey, so far one cricket has the record at two full laps around the deli cup before he lost the race, LOL.


No doubt...a few weeks ago, about 1am, I decided to feed my P. nigricolor.  It had eaten 2 smaller meals since molting and had gone 4 days since its last meal (long time for this t).  I opened the hatch and (with a 12" tweezers) lowered in the prey, as soon as the cricket moved  frantically, the 2.5" nigricolor was up the side, jumped nearly 10" to catch the cricket on the way, snatch it off the tweezers and back into the enclosure in the blink of an eye.   The appetites and aggressive feeding response they have is nothing short of astounding.  Great genus, they need a stronger presence in the hobby without question!

Machalla is one I'd love to get my hands on in the future.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Arachnomaniac19 (Sep 24, 2014)

cold blood said:


> No doubt...a few weeks ago, about 1am, I decided to feed my P. nigricolor.  It had eaten 2 smaller meals since molting and had gone 4 days since its last meal (long time for this t).  I opened the hatch and (with a 12" tweezers) lowered in the prey, as soon as the cricket moved  frantically, the 2.5" nigricolor was up the side, jumped nearly 10" to catch the cricket on the way, snatch it off the tweezers and back into the enclosure in the blink of an eye.   The appetites and aggressive feeding response they have is nothing short of astounding.  Great genus, they need a stronger presence in the hobby without question!
> 
> Machalla is one I'd love to get my hands on in the future.


They seem quite common in Canada so I'd imagine it wouldn't be too hard to find them in America, am I wrong?


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## Poec54 (Sep 25, 2014)

cold blood said:


> the 2.5" nigricolor was up the side, jumped nearly 10" to catch the cricket on the way, snatch it off the tweezers and back into the enclosure in the blink of an eye.   The appetites and aggressive feeding response they have is nothing short of astounding.  Great genus, they need a stronger presence in the hobby without question!


Gotta love a spider with a healthy appetite.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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## MsBuzzKill (Sep 25, 2014)

awiec said:


> I was thinking about grabbing some of those pamphs from stamps too since I've been pleased with his service before and the slings I've received were very alive and alert when I opened the vials.


Yes, I love Stamps Tarantulas - I've now purchased 6 Ts from him (including the new B.vagans female and 1-inch "pamphs" sling) and everything has been great so far.  BTW, he now has just 4 of those 1" machalla slings left and he's heading to a reptile show this weekend. You may want to jump on them before they're gone


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## awiec (Sep 25, 2014)

geekypam74 said:


> Yes, I love Stamps Tarantulas - I've now purchased 6 Ts from him (including the new B.vagans female and 1-inch "pamphs" sling) and everything has been great so far.  BTW, he now has just 4 of those 1" machalla slings left and he's heading to a reptile show this weekend. You may want to jump on them before they're gone


I'm waiting for payday as I have to be an adult and make sure my bills are paid but after that I will be sqeeing like a little girl when I get to click the order button.

Reactions: Like 1


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