Light and darkness.

[Mr B Smithi]

Hi guys,

Is it harmful to keep a tarantula in a closet based set-up?! Would constant darkness be harmful to it for say day-night cycles, growth etc..?. I have seen some closet set-ups around this forum in images. One major benefit would be to keep pets / children away with a locked closet I guess... Any views?

 

[friendttyy]

Doubt it. My tarantulas spend their winters in my cupboard for warmth.

 

[darkness975]

I like giving them a sense of day and night just so they are oriented into a schedule better. But that's me.

 

[jayspider]

I plan on setting up in the closet but I will just leave the light on during the day for a day and night cycle

 

[viper69]

They are animals which evolved with a day/light cycle in the wild, provide them the same in captivity.

 

[freedumbdclxvi]

Studies with spiders in total darkness at all times have shown they don't suffer any ill effects, and I have kept many of mine without problem as well. You want to avoid total light at all times - darkness isn't a problem.

(I recommend Barth's A Spider's World: Senses and Behavior, which details this and references specific papers regarding it, to those interested in further study.)

 

[hawkellen]

Studies with spiders in total darkness at all times have shown they don't suffer any ill effects, and I have kept many of mine without problem as well. You want to avoid total light at all times - darkness isn't a problem.

(I recommend Barth's A Spider's World: Senses and Behavior, which details this and references specific papers regarding it, to those interested in further study.)

I have kept my A. versicolor and P. Irminia in a dark closet when I had to stay at a friends when I was displaced from my home for a while. They did fine; bright light is a no-no....

 

[sugarsandz]

I had to put my five tarantulas in the closet for 6 + months because of kittens and the mother cat while she was acclimating to the rest of the animals in the house. Honestly, I didn't notice any difference in behavior, everyone continued to eat and sit still like always. I finally bought a bookshelf with glass doors from Ikea so I could have them out in the light again, it's nice to be able to see them again! Two of my cats prefer to sleep in the spider room so I just put a child lock on the cabinet door and it has done an amazing job.

I don't know what the cut off is for keeping a tarantula in the dark almost constantly, some spiders block themselves in their burrows for long periods of time but that's of their own accord.

 

[Tongue Flicker]

My Ts have not seen any natural light/sunlight for almost 5 years and are doing great. The burrowers and webbers became pet rocks after a few months' time. Well, that is given that they don't have a huge enclosure.