Avicularia purpurea "Purple Pinktoe"

[Malestrom]

Hi folks,
Im new to 'T's and have no scorpions either, ive always been a reptile guy but recently iv become interested in some rather interesting creatures, I love vinegaroons and am looking for a 'T' that is the least poisonous and least agrressive yet still very pretty. A friend sent me here to the boards to askmy many questions, she recommended Avicularia purpurea "Purple Pinktoe",
Id love to hear your opinionson it and others you recommend.
Thanks so much!!
Malestrom :biggrin:

 

[grayzone]

1st off im going to say welcome to the hobby. as far as your ? goes...well, it depends... what are you looking for in a t.

---------- Post added 12-15-2011 at 10:54 PM ----------

there are a ton of popular 1st choices. if you make a specific list of what you're lookin for... ie size, arboreal or terrestrial, cost etc... you'll have a ton of answers pop up in no time. this isn't the first "what should i get" thread on these forums. We are all still glad to help

 

[Kungfujoe]

Many avics are nice, i have a minatrix but i really like the diversipes. Green bottle blues are nice but they arent for people who like to handle spiders.

 

[Earth Tiger]

Welcome. First no T is poisonous and it is pretty safe for you to eat it, except you may be allergic to their urticating hairs and suffer from pharyngeal irritation if you are eating the new world species and you don't remove their hairs on abdomens. :laugh:

If you are not going to eat it, you should want to find out how venomous it is, not how poisonous it is. :

 

[Rob1985]

I give a +1 for the GBB. Awesome species and great webbers!

 

[Shrike]

Your friend gave you a good recommendation. If you want an arboreal T I'll also throw Avicularia versicolor into the mix. Coloration in both slings and adults is amazing. C. cyaneopubescens and B. smithi would be excellent options on the terrestrial side. I should mention that C. cyaneopubescens, while not a particularly defensive species (see threads on defensive vs aggressive), can be nervous at times.

 

[BimBim]

Welcome, A. Purpurea is a nice choice , and my suggestion are;
Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens-this one isnt always that good to handle but a lot of people do I myself included, but have nice colors.
Avicularia diversipes- i personally dont have one yet, but they look really nice in my opinion and being am Avicularia i assume they are rather easy to handle.
Brachypelma emilia- good to handle very docile and i heard they have no bite record but i could be mistaken.
Brachypelma smithi- easy to handle looks similar to the emilia
Avicularia Versicolor- one of my favorites i see others have suggested it as well

 

[Malestrom]

wow so many new words
slings
venemous vs poisonous
arboral vs terrestreal
edible? lol NO!!
I do have severe asthma though, life threatening and its set off by almost anything.
Serious sinus trouble too
defensive vs agressive, nervous
I guess im looking for the ultimate 'wimp' spider for 'wimp /sick owners lol
owner/caretaker lets not go off on that one lol!
So much help thanks!

 

[The_Dude]

Then you're on the right track with the Avicularia species. I would be concerned about your asthmatic conditions when considering the urticating hairs of new world species (new world = the "fuzzy" spiders from the Americas which are known for their hair kicking as opposed to their venom). That said, Avicularia would be a good choice for you considering they can't kick their hairs, but instead just deposit them on the ground. Some people say versicolor can kick hairs, but I believe it is a rare occurrence, and I've not experienced it first-hand. And their hairs aren't nearly as problematic as other new world T's.

Also IMO, Avicularia are one of the most vibrant colored specimens. They are generally docile in nature, construct fabulous web lairs, and just fun to watch grow and morph into their adult colors.

---------- Post added 12-16-2011 at 04:05 PM ----------

wow so many new words
slings
venemous vs poisonous
arboral vs terrestreal
edible? lol NO!!
I do have severe asthma though, life threatening and its set off by almost anything.
Serious sinus trouble too
defensive vs agressive, nervous
I guess im looking for the ultimate 'wimp' spider for 'wimp /sick owners lol
owner/caretaker lets not go off on that one lol!
So much help thanks!

sling = spiderling (baby T)
arboreal = tree dwelling
terrestrial = lives on the ground
burrowing = lives in the ground
edible = lol
venomous = toxins injected
poisonous = inherently toxic, ie frogs, plants, etc
aggressive = wants to kill you, generally not associated with T's
defensive = will let you know when you invade their territory, usually by standing on it's back legs and showing off those pretty little teeth

 

[grayzone]

yeah, id recommend goin with an A. versicolor 1st... beautiful and fairly large for an avic.. plus half the cost of A. purpurea lol... once you get the hang of it and you decide ts are, in fact, for you THEN go with a more expensive t.

 

[bchbum11]

+1 on A versicolor. And if possible, get it as a sling (definition above) They grow pretty quickly, and watching the color changes they go through is just plain awesome.

 

[Rob1985]

In my experience (IMHO) and I am sure there are others who will back me up, but the A. versicolor is harder to keep than a GBB.

 

[Shrike]

In my experience (IMHO) and I am sure there are others who will back me up, but the A. versicolor is harder to keep than a GBB.

I wouldn't classify either as difficult to keep, but I'll agree with that. Avicularia require more consideration of factors like humidity and ventilation.

 

[BrettG]

Get the purpurea.You can get gbb anytime,as common as they have become.

 

[Rob1985]

I wouldn't classify either as difficult to keep, but I'll agree with that. Avicularia require more consideration of factors like humidity and ventilation.

The climate considerations are what I am referring to.