H. Gigas Communal ?

Selmartillery

Arachnopeon
Joined
Oct 12, 2019
Messages
30
Hi everyone ! So the last thread about this topic is dated to 2015 as I could see.... as I have many interrogations about his topic I decided to open a new one !

So my fellow T lovers I just ordered a few sling from which 2 H. Gigas and 1 P. Sazimai... and I was wondering If I should replace the Sazimai for two more Gigas to try a communal setup ....

(Sazimai is 20 And H. Gigas are 10 and I already paid for them....) I am in touch with the seller and he will be shipping them monday or tuesday.

So basically I have many many questions, is a communal only with two T is possible? would it increase the risk of fights ? Or should I go with 4 instead ?

I see H. Gigas communal being successful somewhat to a point, will I be forced to seperate them as they mature ?

Should I offer more space or less space to avoid territorial behaviors ?

Im in for the experiment loosing one of them will be a shame but Ill manage the pain ^^
The gigas I am buying are all from the same eggsack and are kept together to this day, they hatched a month ago so they are still very very tiny, first or second instar ;)

Thank you all
 

cold blood

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We've actually been getting a lot of the "are H. gigas communal?" questions over the past year...must be being perpetuated on social media or you tube.....

H. gigas are not communal.
 

Selmartillery

Arachnopeon
Joined
Oct 12, 2019
Messages
30
We've actually been getting a lot of the "are H. gigas communal?" questions over the past year...must be being perpetuated on social media or you tube.....

H. gigas are not communal.
Yeah I read about that. They say they tolerate each other and communal per say. So you would say no to this then ?
 

cold blood

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No, slings stick around, but the communal attitude wont last.

Truth is a lot of slings can be left together for a good period of time, doesn't make them communal....even if mom is involved like you can see with gigas.
 

Selmartillery

Arachnopeon
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Oct 12, 2019
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30
Very good to know so Ill keep my sazimai and two gigas seperated ! Thanks I wanted a straight answer !
 

Arachnid Addicted

Arachnoprince
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Apr 16, 2019
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1,546
We've actually been getting a lot of the "are H. gigas communal?" questions over the past year...must be being perpetuated on social media or you tube.....

H. gigas are not communal.
This myth has been spread around for the past 3 (or 4 years), if I remember correctly. Some say they even share food and take care of each other. Lol.
 

Selmartillery

Arachnopeon
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Oct 12, 2019
Messages
30
Yes thats what I read all round the web...
I actually seen a video of slings sharing food.
I have no idea of they are sharing or just competing for it. Well Ive read things that are as old as 2006 of people trying communal setups, some succeeded others had some casualties.

Well I came here to have an answer, arachnoboards have never let me down since I started my tarantula journey. I prefer having answers here from passionate and experienced keepers.

Thanks people you might have just spared one H. Gigas's life ;) and for that if someone here has names for these absolute mammoth of fossorials Ill be glad to name them as a tribute to y'all ^^ !!
 

Goopyguy56

Arachnoangel
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Nov 16, 2017
Messages
830
Communals are a touchy subject on here. Like handling. It's somewhat unfortunate how emotional some get on here. Can't even talk about certain things without some getting bent out of shape.
 

Selmartillery

Arachnopeon
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Oct 12, 2019
Messages
30
Communals are a touchy subject on here. Like handling. It's somewhat unfortunate how emotional some get on here. Can't even talk about certain things without some getting bent out of shape.
True that. I do handle some of my Ts, not regularily though only when they seem calm and eager to come out of their enclosures. Nerver had a pb, always took all precautions that can be taken. I know some people here will be annoyed by it.
I first got into Ts to get rid of my irrational fear of spiders as a lot of people, without handling them I couldnt fulfill that purpose. You can call me selfish alright. It is what it is. I still love them and care for them as best as I can and have a profound respect for what they are and what they can do.
 

cold blood

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Communals are a touchy subject on here. Like handling. It's somewhat unfortunate how emotional some get on here. Can't even talk about certain things without some getting bent out of shape.
nobody here got bent out of shape though.
 

RezonantVoid

Hollow Knight
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Jan 7, 2018
Messages
1,354
When i started keeping T's in 2018 the only successfully communal species id hear of was Balfouri and a small dwarf species in Australia. Suddenly i hear about Incei, Metallica (i have at least seen proof of sibling communals), Avics, and now Gigas? Where are all these theories coming from!

I mean you could probably keep sack mates together for a while during the early instars but after that i wouldnt wanna risk unnecessary deaths
 

viper69

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
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When i started keeping T's in 2018 the only successfully communal species id hear of was Balfouri and a small dwarf species in Australia. Suddenly i hear about Incei, Metallica (i have at least seen proof of sibling communals), Avics, and now Gigas? Where are all these theories coming from!

I mean you could probably keep sack mates together for a while during the early instars but after that i wouldnt wanna risk unnecessary deaths
The idea of communal P mets, and Avics has been around for decades, and it doesn't end well.

This dwarf species, have they been observed in the wild to be true communal? Or merely tolerate each other in close proximity (not communal).
 

RezonantVoid

Hollow Knight
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The idea of communal P mets, and Avics has been around for decades, and it doesn't end well.

This dwarf species, have they been observed in the wild to be true communal? Or merely tolerate each other in close proximity (not communal).
Phlogius sp. Pygmy is the name, very little info on them other than that a group called Minibeast wildlife (as far as i can tell the sole supplier and breeders) claim they are communal. They are an experienced team that know their stuff so im 50:50 on taking their word for it, but im pretty sure i read reviews of successful communals. If so or if not its deliberate or mere tolerance i couldnt say for sure
 

Asgiliath

Arachnobaron
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Even Tom Moran had a P. metallica communal ! Don't remember how that ended up but
 

viper69

ArachnoGod
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I think it's absolutely crazy to throw a bunch of Ts together simply because you can with absolutely no data from the wild on this subject. Would you liked being thrown into a room with a bunch of people kept there your entire life??
 

coolnweird

Arachnobaron
Joined
Oct 20, 2019
Messages
512
Even Tom Moran had a P. metallica communal ! Don't remember how that ended up but
As far as I know, at the last update, he removed and separated out 2 'runts' and the remaining Ts are still doing well in the communal
 

Ian14

Arachnobaron
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Nov 27, 2019
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324
I'm not sure about P metallica but from what I understand, M Balfouri kept communal don't breed successfully. If that is the case then surely it suggests that a communal existence isn't natural.
 
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