List (with pictures) of Tarantulas in US and Canada Zoos

[SonsofArachne]

The list is from a site called The Online Zoo. I went through it and two things stood out. The poor husbandry in a number of these zoos and that fact that some were scientifically mislabeled, particularly some labelled as T. blondi (under the heading " Giant Bird-eating Tarantula")

Here's the link: http://www.theonlinezoo.com/pages/tarantulas.html

 

[Vanessa]

The list is from a site called The Online Zoo. I went through it and two things stood out. The poor husbandry in a number of these zoos and that fact that some were scientifically mislabeled, particularly some labelled as T. blondi (under the heading " Giant Bird-eating Tarantula")
Here's the link: http://www.theonlinezoo.com/pages/tarantulas.html

If they can't even get a tarantula enclosure right, I hate to think how the other animals are living.

 

[Ashlynn Rose]

I went to some reptile zoo where they had fantastic enclosures for most of the reptiles and amphibians. I figured that care would transfer over to the invertebrate section, but I was wrong. They were in tiny enclosures that were built into a wall. There was a C. lividum with less than an inch of substrate and a few other tarantulas with disgusting substrate and weird decor. One tarantula even had a bunch of true spiders living in the cage with it. People don't do any research before slapping a few tarantulas into their zoo.

 

[Greasylake]

What is a giant trapdoor spider? None of the bigger Ts make trapdoors, so I'm at a complete loss here.

 

[Liquifin]

This is an outdated website with an outdated info of everything. So I understand why people here are infuriated at the poor husbandry. But most of these pictures and information are from past information from like 10 years ago. But yes, i'm not surprised at the poor husbandry by uninformed zoos. Which is becoming more common sadly.

 

[EtienneN]

There's one reason why zoos do this; they want display animals. If they provided proper husbandry they'd be presenting the public with a reclusive pet hole and that's just not good for their bottom dollar.

 

[sasker]

What is a giant trapdoor spider? None of the bigger Ts make trapdoors, so I'm at a complete loss here.

It looks like a B. hamorii. I have one myself, but it never made a trapdoor. I must have been keeping it wrong all this time. I am so glad I checked that site!

 

[SonsofArachne]

There's one reason why zoos do this; they want display animals. If they provided proper husbandry they'd be presenting the public with a reclusive pet hole and that's just not good for their bottom dollar.

I agree that is the reason, but they should really stick with species that are more display friendly then - NW terrestrials, some arboreals, etc.

 

[EtienneN]

The Cincinnati Zoo, (whilst still having a couple issues like too much extraneous stuff in the enclosures) is surprisingly good with their entomology and arachnid exhibits. Their P. regalis is so plump it looks gravid. I don't know if they are overfeeding or if perhaps it might actually be ready to drop a sac. The substrate isn't ideal for the terrestrials but they weren't trying to climb the walls and at least they are given real actual water bowls without any sponges in them.

 

[SonsofArachne]

The Cincinnati Zoo, (whilst still having a couple issues like too much extraneous stuff in the enclosures) is surprisingly good with their entomology and arachnid exhibits

I've been to the Cincinnati Zoo a couple of times about 20 yrs ago. Easily the best invert display that I've seen in a zoo.

 

[MasterOogway]

There's one reason why zoos do this; they want display animals. If they provided proper husbandry they'd be presenting the public with a reclusive pet hole and that's just not good for their bottom dollar.

As a zookeeper I'm inclined to take this personally! I proudly display at least 3 pet holes in my insect zoo.

 

[MasterOogway]

In all seriousness though, it is a struggle to balance having an animal on display for the public to see vs doing things exactly by the book. We need to have animals visible, and try to do our best to do so. Sometimes that mean straying from what the hobby considers 'optimum' husbandry. But, we are there, 4-8 hours every day doing pretty rigorous observations and husbandry practices with our animals, and have access to literally round the clock vet care. So we can get away with not doing things totally by the book because we tend to be far more involved in day to day care of our animals than the typical hobbyist. As an aside, we're also decidedly *not* around to teach people how to properly care for these kinds of animals; our main goals are conservation of the natural world and education of the public about said conservation (and the cool species out there that make it worth it!) You shouldn't be taking husbandry lessons from zoo displays typically, because our goals are not yours, and we are obligated to do things a little differently. I absolutely keep critters a little differently at work than I do at home. Also contrary to what may be popular opinion, 99% of zoos do not make profits. We're all literally non-profit organizations. All money made that doesn't go to cover operational costs goes back into conservation projects. The facilities that DO set out to make money above all else are not AZA facilities, and make the real zoo professional cringe even more than they make you do so .