Level of experience for C. versicolor

[Rhysandfish]

Im dying to get a C. versicolor but I dont know how much experience i need? How long should I wait after I get my first T's? Also, I hear the slings die easily and I wanted to know why.

 

[MissHarlen]

Im dying to get a C. versicolor but I dont know how much experience i need? How long should I wait after I get my first T's? Also, I hear the slings die easily and I wanted to know why.

I got two versicolor as my second try at tarantula keeping. I have them on dry substrate with a water dish at 70° and they do just fine.

 

[Ryunss]

I wouldn’t say you need much experience to keep them. Just bare in mind they can be rather skittish and bolt pretty quickly, so always be on your toes and have a catch cup around. The slings generally die easily due to people only taking advice from care sheets which say to keep humidity high. You should have a well ventilated enclosure with cross ventilation, a water dish, a cork slab and a couple of fake plant leaves for anchor points. If you have these things all should be well! Good luck.

 

[PidderPeets]

A 3/4 inch C. versicolor sling was my 3rd tarantula. They really aren't that difficult to care for. The reason they might die off easily is because they're a bit more sensitive to husbandry mistakes. But as long as you do proper research and don't just blindly follow care sheets, you should be fine

 

[Rhysandfish]

@PidderPeets @Ryunss @MissHarlen Thanks! I will definitely be getting one after I get a little experience with T's.

 

[Ungoliant]

How long should I wait after I get my first T's? Also, I hear the slings die easily and I wanted to know why.

I think it would make a fine second or third tarantula, once you have experienced the basics of tarantula care (feeding, molting, and rehousing).

However, with the right instructions (and feedback on your setup from this forum), a beginner can successfully keep Caribena versicolor. (My first two tarantulas were Avicularia avicularia, a species with similar care requirements.) I think in the case of Avicularia (and Caribena versicolor), a big reason we see such high losses is that a lot of beginners end up with a killer combination of a spider that is less tolerant of beginner's errors and bad caresheets/advice from pet stores.

While some species are hardier than others, slings are more fragile than a juvenile or adult of the same species. If you can find a juvenile (about 2" or larger), it will be hardier than a sling.

 

[Venom1080]

They do like smaller prey items as slings. The normal sized prekilled prey is usually too big.

 

[Rhysandfish]

I think it would make a fine second or third tarantula, once you have experienced the basics of tarantula care (feeding, molting, and rehousing).

However, with the right instructions (and feedback on your setup from this forum), a beginner can successfully keep Caribena versicolor. (My first two tarantulas were Avicularia avicularia, a species with similar care requirements.) I think in the case of Avicularia (and Caribena versicolor), a big reason we see such high losses is that a lot of beginners end up with a killer combination of a spider that is less tolerant of beginner's errors and bad caresheets/advice from pet stores.

While some species are hardier than others, slings are more fragile than a juvenile or adult of the same species. If you can find a juvenile (about 2" or larger), it will be hardier than a sling.

But that defeats the purpose of a versicolor .

 

[miss moxie]

But that defeats the purpose of a versicolor .

I'm afraid I don't understand. What is the 'purpose' of a versicolor?

 

[ccTroi]

Well ventilation and a full water dish at all times! Tarantulas do not drown, even slings. The tiny "hairs" they have around their body help to increase their surface area, which keeps them from breaking the surface tension. Use a bottle cap for the slings. I have several versicolor slings and all are well. Let me know if you need anymore help!

 

[Rhysandfish]

I'm afraid I don't understand. What is the 'purpose' of a versicolor?

Dont they lose their color by 2"-3"?

 

[The Grym Reaper]

They're a lot more hardy than people give them credit for (until I saw a video explaining the proper care I was put off getting one by all the people saying they were fragile, I have 3 now), most sling deaths are the result of bad husbandry (I.e. keeping them in overly wet, stuffy enclosures with poor ventilation because care sheets bleat on about high humidity numbers).

They're pretty easy to keep, once they've established their web tubes you don't have to worry about them bolting out of the enclosure as they just retreat into it, they have great appetites.
For slings, just give them an enclosure with plenty of cross-ventilation, slightly moist substrate, some cork bark, fake leaves to anchor webbing to and a water dish and they're good, adults can be kept on dry sub with a large water dish.

Dont they lose their color by 2"-3"?

No, that's when they start going from various blues to all kinds of pretty.

2" female when I got her

Same female after her first moult in my care
View media item 38105Same female after her next moult
View media item 38446Same female now
View media item 42219

 

[miss moxie]

Dont they lose their color by 2"-3"?

They don't 'lose' their color, they change colors. At first they are blue, and then they turn dark reddish-pink with purple hints, and greenish-blue as well. Have you seen adult specimens?

It doesn't really make sense to buy a sling just for colors that it won't keep when it matures.

 

[Whitelightning777]

Question:

Do you feed the sling before it builds a web or do you wait?

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Question:

Do you feed the sling before it builds a web or do you wait?

I usually wait at least 24hrs after housing to feed, if it hasn't made webbing then I hold the prey item by one of the back legs and then dangle it in front of the spider in a way that it doesn't tag the tongs accidentally (they grab the body and pull it away, leaving me holding a severed leg which always elicits a little chuckle from me because I'm a bit mental and quite possibly a horrible facsimile of a human being).

 

[ccTroi]

Question:

Do you feed the sling before it builds a web or do you wait?

I would wait a few days for it to settle in its enclosure. I always crush the head of my feeders to my slings as a safety precaution. Dark and dull blue will be a sign that your versicolor is in premolt.

 

[BrokenLegBaboon]

No, that's when they start going from various blues to all kinds of pretty.

2" female when I got her
View attachment 247748
Same female after her first moult in my care
View media item 38105Same female after her next moult
View media item 38446Same female now
View media item 42219

May I ask what were the intervals between these pictures?

 

[CJJon]

The first time I fed my C. versicolor sling I was using long tongs to drop in a mealworm. I got about 3-4 inches from the top of the enclosure (a large peanut butter jar) and the little stinker jumped up out of the jar, did a half gainer, grabbed the worm off the tongs mid air, did another loop and a half and dove back into the jar. I stood there with my mouth open for a bit! It has since build some cool web tunnels and doesn't jump out anymore...

 

[The Grym Reaper]

May I ask what were the intervals between these pictures?

No, you may not

1st pic is when I got her 28/9/16
2nd 25/1/17
3rd 10/2/17
4th 4/7/17

She's moulted twice since that last one, she's about 4.75" now

16/1/18
View media item 4715625/12/18

0.1 Caribena versicolor

• The Grym Reaper
• Dec 25, 2018
• 7
• antilles pinktoe tarantula avicularia versicolor caribena caribena versicolor female martinique pinktoe tarantula versicolor

Mileena 1 week post moult.

 

[Goopyguy56]

My first sling and 2nd t ever. Never watched care video and didnt know what cross ventilation was. Did fine.