Need sexing information.

[whoami?]

Well, I don't NEED sexing information, but it couldn't hurt.

My usambara just molted, and I'm assuming it's big enough to sex. I've read that there's a way to sex tarantulas just by looking at moults, but I never really paid any attention to how it is done.

So, does anyone know of a website that tells how to determine sex by looking at the moult?

 

[JDS]

Start with looking at my post from yesterday (1/30 11:30pm). Note you're best off getting the molt within an hour or so before it dries. This allows the area of the book lungs to be spread out. If it has dried, then you can use alcohol to soften it back up.

 

[whoami?]

Ah, thanks.

I think I have a male, which sucks.

 

[JDS]

If its a small size tarantula (<2") try to get a 6x to 10x magnifying glass. I have a 6x 1/2" diameter one that looks to cheap but looks great. What your looking for can be quite small.

 

[whoami?]

Originally posted by JDS
If its a small size tarantula (<2") try to get a 6x to 10x magnifying glass. I have a 6x 1/2" diameter one that looks to cheap but looks great. What your looking for can be quite small.

My tarantula is about three inches, so I'm assuming that a magnifying glass will allow one to sex the tarantula fairly accurately.

Anyway, I got a second opinion, and I'm almost 100% certain it's a male.

It's a little bit too soon to be thinking about this, but does anybody actually breed usambaras? They're very cheap, which would lead me to believe that most of them are WC.

 

[Wade]

Lots of people breed usambaras. As you say, so many are imported, but they're also incredably easy to breed. I've bred them a couple of times. Basically, put the male in with a female and they'll do it. They will usually cohabitate for weeks at a time with no problems. This is why slings can usually be had for around $5, or sometimes even less.

Wade