Big "Aboreal" P.murinus (OBT)

[Najakeeper]

I ordered a three tarantulas recently, due to a post mix up they arrived in 72 hours instead of the expected 48. International shipments sometimes have this issue even within Europe.

When I opened the box, this big OBT female was motionless but not curled. I put her in her nice 30x30x30cm glass enclosure in within 60 seconds she tried to kill me in slow motion . Now after a few hours she webbed the top corner of the cage and settled there! I know these can act arboreal but she has a real nice fake plant an all for acting semi-arboreal right below her. I guess she will get used to it.

She is very large by the way, I hope my tiny mature male won`t have issues with her.

Here she is:

 

[mcluskyisms]

Very nice, looks like she will be moulting any day soon

 

[Najakeeper]

Very nice, looks like she will be moulting any day soon

Well she was sold to me as "recently molted and ready for breeding" so go figure .

 

[mcluskyisms]

Well she was sold to me as "recently molted and ready for breeding" so go figure .

Well whoever sold you it doesn't have much of a clue as you can see by the darkening of patellas and carapace that it is in vast need of a moult.

 

[Najakeeper]

Well whoever sold you it doesn't have much of a clue as you can see by the darkening of patellas and carapace that it is in vast need of a moult.

Well, I hope she didn`t try to molt while in the box and got scared then. It would suck.

 

[mcluskyisms]

Well, I hope she didn`t try to molt while in the box and got scared then. It would suck.

She'll be fine. Just let her settle in and web up. I'm sure she'll moult within the next month or so and then once shes all hardened up and been fed it will be time to pair them.

 

[Bill S]

"Arboreal" means they live in trees, and trees are generally a bit more than 30 cm tall. "Strictly terrestrial" species often climb much higher than this in the wild, so it's perfectly reasonable for them to climb a few inches in captivity.

 

[metallica]

Well whoever sold you it doesn't have much of a clue as you can see by the darkening of patellas and carapace that it is in vast need of a moult.

erm i hate to burst your bubble..... but this is the normal color of the carapace and patella. nothing in the pics suggest an upcoming molt to me.

the only part that really darkens in pre-molt is the thin skin of the abdomen.

 

[Najakeeper]

It is difficult to guess molt with baboons, I can never guess correctly with my M.balfouris.

But she does have a decent size abdomen .

I will try feeding her Saturday, let's see if she eats.

 

[mcluskyisms]

erm i hate to burst your bubble..... but this is the normal color of the carapace and patella. nothing in the pics suggest an upcoming molt to me.

the only part that really darkens in pre-molt is the thin skin of the abdomen.

Well every Pterinochilus murinus that I have ever kept have all darkened up on the patella, tibia and metatarsus approximately a month before moult, I have never noticed a change in colour to their abdomens as I presumed that was only a trait of new world tarantulas... :?

 

[EndlessForms]

Well every Pterinochilus murinus that I have ever kept have all darkened up on the patella, tibia and metatarsus approximately a month before moult, I have never noticed a change in colour to their abdomens as I presumed that was only a trait of new world tarantulas... :?

i'm sure it does get darker, but since they don't have urticating hairs, they won't have a bald spot so you cant see the "skin" and this is what my obt looked like before molting, she got darker and had a bit of hair missing like on this one's carapace and patellas...

 

[mcluskyisms]

i'm sure it does get darker, but since they don't have urticating hairs, they won't have a bald spot so you cant see the "skin" and this is what my obt looked like before molting, she got darker and had a bit of hair missing like on this one's carapace and patellas...

Yeah I know old worlds don't have urticating setae, also I know that they don't develop a bald patch on the cuticle of the abdomen during pre-moult. The setae loss on the carapace can usually be accountable for an active tarantula that has been in a few bumps and scrapes etc. Although the darkening and loss of setae on all of the patellas and tibia's usually indicate an upcoming moult in Pterinochilus.

Anyway, the OP mentioned the seller said it was "recently molted and ready for breeding"

There is no way that the tarantula pictured is recently moulted unless it has been living in an enclosure with sandpaper wallpaper. (Think you guys call it glass paper?)

 

[Najakeeper]

Recent is a loose term for adult female tarantulas .

I have checked a few pictures online though, and mine surely looks darker. Let's see what she does to a female dubia Saturday.

 

[JC]

...looks like she will be moulting any day soon

I agree .

 

[Najakeeper]

Yep, she has no intention of feeding and the more I look at her, the more "pre-molt" she looks. A lot of shiny black parts on her exoskeleton. I hope my 1 month old MM stays fresh until she is ready.

 

[Tym Hollerup]

Regardless if in need of a molt or not, she is absolutely stunning! I have 3 OBT's right now but their all an inch or less. I'll be getting a 3" Female on Wednesday though. I still don't fully understand how to tell if a T is in pre-molt or not. Especially with my burrowing species! My H. lividum, P. chordatus, and P. lugardi are all pet holes! Well, my H. lividum is yet to burrow, but she will become a pet hole at least!

 

[Najakeeper]

And today she molted so thanks for the heads up!

Here are the spermathecae:

I will pair her in a couple weeks.

 

[Meecht]

Be sure to post new pics of her once after she's recovered from the molt. The color must be awesome!

 

[swallowscott]

Great looking spider, I got an obt spiderling about 6 weeks age and it has shed twice already. Now lookin a decent size. I can't believe how fast they are she's a lot quicker than my p regalis or p ornata. She's managed to escape her tank a few times when trying to feed or do tank maintenance

 

[tarantulagirl10]

Congrats on the successful molt! Now you know she really is freshly molted. Good luck with your breeding project