Heteroscrodra maculata vs. Poecilotheria pederseni

[Tym Hollerup]

So I'm planning on getting my very 1st Arboreal. But I'm having a small delema. I want to get a sling, but which one? Both of these are offered as slings from the dealer I'll be ordering from. Both are very reasonable priced. Here is my main issues... I LOVE how Pokies look. I don't love that you need to keep the humidity so high. Sometimes hard for me to maintain misting on a regular basis. Although I do have Terrarium Moss. As for the H. mac... I LOVE African Baboons! I have a collection which includes 3 P. murinus (ordering a 4th as well), 1 P. chordatus and 1 P. lugardi. Anything from Africa I pretty much want. Plus H. macs can be kept a bit on the drier side being their native land is much dryer for an arboreal. However, the downside of this species as my 1st Arboreal is all the stories you here! So really... How bad are they? What would you choose of the two T's? Please respond one of the two mentioned. I understand a lot of you will have other suggestions, however this is what's available and what I'm looking at getting. Thanks for the answers in advance.

 

[xhexdx]

Maybe you should be a little more flexible on where you're buying spiders?

I'd get the pokie over the H. mac. You don't need to keep them as moist as you're implying, imo.

 

[NikiP]

Pokies can be a hit or miss as to how much they are seen.

H. maculata are lovely, but you will have a lovely wall of dirt If mine hadn't been positioned absolutely just right one day so I glimpsed just a *smidge* of a boxing glove, it might have been a good month or two before I figured out he had molted & matured

Eventually I plan on getting a couple more H. maculata slings or maybe just buying a confirmed female.

 

[synyster]

I'm gonna get hated upon here by all the pokie lovers, but H.mac all the way!!

 

[grayzone]

i too was just contemplating between p. murinus and h. mac. i have 2 pokies, so wasnt lookin for a 1st arboreal per say, i just really like the 2 babboons .... i went with obt, as from what i hear the h macs are very rarely visible? plus i really wanted one that webbed heavily. my obt i got today is already startin lol.... so if you want a t you can see more, go with the pederseni, as pokies are more visible? at least when older...... i still want an h. mac badly so waitin for a good deal lol.... hope ya end up with both

---------- Post added at 08:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:52 PM ----------

and btw... pokies are used to "seasons" so you can go periods of drier and warmer climate. either way youre doing the right thing by gettin one as a sling.. they both (I can imagine, but the pokie 4 sure) can be a bit nerve racking when it comes time to feed, clean, and rehouse. Since youll be gettin them tiny you can get easily accustomed to their mannerism and speed and it wont be as bad as a full grown t of either species.

 

[NikiP]

[/COLOR]and btw... pokies are used to "seasons" so you can go periods of drier and warmer climate. either way youre doing the right thing by gettin one as a sling.. they both (I can imagine, but the pokie 4 sure) can be a bit nerve racking when it comes time to feed, clean, and rehouse. Since youll be gettin them tiny you can get easily accustomed to their mannerism and speed and it wont be as bad as a full grown t of either species.

Depends really. I rehoused my my 3" T. gigas, 3" P. ornata, & 1" P. striata in less then 15mins a couple of weeks ago. None tried to run. Heck, I ended up just using my hand to move the P. striata. Couldn't hardly see it in the old container & it turned out to be in heavy premolt, poor little rolly polly thing Never had a pokie try to bolt either, just head for their retreat.

They just a much worse rep then they deserve.

 

[advan]

Get both of them. If you're getting slings they shouldn't put too big of a dent in your wallet.

 

[Tym Hollerup]

Maybe you should be a little more flexible on where you're buying spiders?

Well here's why I'm not being "more flexible" as you put it. I know what I want for the most part. I have been wanting a C. darlingi since I first saw it! I even have an entire enclosure bought and ready for it! Just need the T. Well it's been a hell of a ride trying to get my hands on one!!! Paul Becker had 18. One week later, ALL gone! Ken has slings now. However, for only $20 more I can get a CONFIRMED 4.5" FEMALE! So here's where I'm coming from... I have been wanting a Horned Baboon (specifically a darlingi which Ken's are not) for a VERY long time. Even bought the enclosure as I said. Once money was there, the T's were gone! Do you have any clue how hard C. darlingi's are to come by? Especially a female? This dealer has only ONE left. I'm NOT letting this slip away from me!!! I've been waiting months for a darlingi!

Get both of them. If you're getting slings they shouldn't put too big of a dent in your wallet.

Only one issue... I'm staying with my parents for the time being and am only aloud 3 more. Getting 1 C. darlingi, 1 more OBT, and then 1 final sling. But I do want one arboreal at least. All my other T's are terrestrials.

Also on a side note... What is the max size both of these species get anyway? Google doesn't help for crap on "care sheets".

 

[Hatr3d]

Why don't you consider getting a different species if that's your first arboreal?

I'd pick Heteroscodra maculata all the way but it's just me, it's probably the most underrated species in the "hobby" imo, but since a H.maculata is faster, more shy, nervous and has a worse venom then you should maybe go with the P.pederseni.

If I was you I would still consider getting an Avicularia (all the way easier), Psalmopoeus (defensive/nervous but still better than a H.maculata) or Tapinauchenius (just wicked fast). All 3 genera would be better for a first arboreal experience.

As with sizes, I'm not familiar with inches, but a P.pederseni will grow a bit bigger than a H.maculata

 

[Unravel]

Psalmous! To me p. irminia are one of the most underrated spiders and also they're fast and defensive but if you do get tagged it won't be as bad as an h. mac tagging you.. that's a comforting thought while making a transition into fast mean arboreals

 

[NikiP]

The OP already has multiple OW. Don't know why he would need to work up to owning another OW species.

 

[JC]

I prefer H.maculata myself. If you like baboons, then you are going to love these guys. Their growth is slower than pokies, but they are the fastest running slings I've seen.

 

[lancej]

You already have a baboon theme going on, I would just stick with it. H. macs, in my opinion, aren't any worse than most pokies as far as defensiveness (and nothing compared to some of the OBTs I've had). I found out the hard way that H. macs are jumpers the first time I bred them (male jumped from the female's cage to my chest to get away from her!). I was able to re-house him with no further incidents and without getting bit. In my opinion, if you are used to the speed and defensiveness of P. murinus, then you shouldn't have any issues with an H. mac (especially since you're getting it as a sling). Just my opinions.

 

[micheldied]

Why don't you consider getting a different species if that's your first arboreal?

I'd pick Heteroscodra maculata all the way but it's just me, it's probably the most underrated species in the "hobby" imo, but since a H.maculata is faster, more shy, nervous and has a worse venom then you should maybe go with the P.pederseni.

If I was you I would still consider getting an Avicularia (all the way easier), Psalmopoeus (defensive/nervous but still better than a H.maculata) or Tapinauchenius (just wicked fast). All 3 genera would be better for a first arboreal experience.

As with sizes, I'm not familiar with inches, but a P.pederseni will grow a bit bigger than a H.maculata

H. Maculata have worse venom than a Poecilotheria?:?

 

[ShadowBlade]

H. Maculata have worse venom than a Poecilotheria?:?

Arguably...

-Sean

 

[synyster]

H. Maculata have worse venom than a Poecilotheria?:?

I am asking myself the same question here...

Where does this affirmation come from? Any scientific paper to confirm this?

From what I've heard, they both have more potent venom than NW's (like most OW's) but I've read nastier things on pokie bites than those tagged by H. mac...
Overall, my opinion would be that they both can inflige a nasty bite so respect and precaution is a must for both species.

 

[JC]

Tarantula venom affects have not been properly studied in humans. There is no 'worst species bite'. Pterinochilus, Poecilotheria, Stromatopelma, and Heteroscodra are reported to be pretty bad bites for tarantulas.

 

[ShadowBlade]

Overall, my opinion would be that they both can inflige a nasty bite so respect and precaution is a must for both species.

This is generally the advice for OW'ers.

-Sean

 

[synyster]

This is generally the advice for OW'ers.

-Sean

Agreed. Just stated my post since were discussing only those 2 specimen's here

 

[Tym Hollerup]

Tarantula venom affects have not been properly studied in humans. There is no 'worst species bite'. Pterinochilus, Poecilotheria, Stromatopelma, and Heteroscodra are reported to be pretty bad bites for tarantulas.

And let's not forget Haplopelma. I talked to the dealer and he's willing to throw in an H. mac and a Curly Hair for free if I get the C. darlingi, OBT, and P, pederseni. I think I'm just gonna take the H. mac and pass on the Curly. My parents will let me have the 3. So I think I'll use the "Hey, look!!! He must have sent me a freebie." line. But I'm just about to go to the website and make sure there's nothing else I'd rather have. But so far it looks like I'll be ordering a 4.5" Female C. darlingi, a 3" Female OBT, a 3/4" P. pederseni, and getting a 1/2" H. mac along with it.