New to true spiders?

[SandDeku]

After being refered here by a fellow member I have a couple of questions.
Iam interested in active spiders and spiders that make nice webs.
Like I was looking for a tarantula but the webs tend to look messy so its not appealing. I used to see spiny orb weavers and agriope orb weavers as a child. I like their bumble bee patterns. Currently I have an 18inch longx 18inch widex 18inch tall exo terra terrarium. I may upgrade it later on just so I can make a nicer looking set up.

But id like to know if there is any kind of spider that isnt extremely small and is easy to keep. I like spiders that wouldnt mind any sort of plants and would actually work around with them. Iam very new to this and would like to get educated on spiders. Please help?

Sorry for my spelling and all!

 

[tarantulagooroo]

We have yellow garden spidrs here, they make beautiful webs, classic web but with a zig zag down the middle, I could sell you one if you want

 

[SandDeku]

We have yellow garden spidrs here, they make beautiful webs, classic web but with a zig zag down the middle, I could sell you one if you want

Id rather buy from local people or a reputable breeder at a reptile show or something.

 

[SandDeku]

Actually thats one of the species I was thinking of getting. they are common in my grandparents house. But id like to know in all honesty. What is their lifespan?

 

[pede2]

you should get a huntsman.. no webs but they're awesome..
maybe a black widow? live up to 3 years..

 

[SandDeku]

you should get a huntsman.. no webs but they're awesome..
maybe a black widow? live up to 3 years..

I'd rather have something that isnt deadly or even that potent to do some harm. Id also rather have something that builds nests of weaves and lives atleast l onger than 3 years.

 

[tarantulagooroo]

I am not sure, I will have to do some reasearch and get back to you

 

[Moltar]

Widows (latrodectus genus) are actuall quite easy and safe to keep. Although their venom is potent, it isn't in their behavior to use it in a defensive capacity. When threatened within their web the scoot away very quickly and leave a trail of very nasty, sticky web behind them. It reminds me of an octopus squirting ink. I'm not saying they will never bite you but it is unlikely as long as you excercise reasonable sfatey practices.

Why don't you just go collect a few spiders in the wild? Argiopes (yellow garden spiders) and Araneus (those fat red/brown orb weavers that make giant webs at night) are both fairly easy to keep in captivity.

 

[Fyreflye]

Unfortunately, the lifespan of most true spiders is less than two years- many of them only living for one.

I'm agreeing with Moltar's idea- go and collect some wild spiders from around your area. You can have fun identifying and learning about them.

 

[SandDeku]

Unfortunately, the lifespan of most true spiders is less than two years- many of them only living for one.

I'm agreeing with Moltar's idea- go and collect some wild spiders from around your area. You can have fun identifying and learning about them.

I live in the northern east area of the states. So I dont know what spiders I can find. Iam still trying to think. Is there a tarantula that looks like a spider? I mean it isnt "furry" and has that metalic look? I dont know but colors and fades is what pretty much brought me into spiders rather than tarantulas. That and spiders make these nice webs. I thought catching wild animals was bad. :/ I kept getting trolled in some other sites saying "its bad taking animals out of the environment". Cause I found this baby painted turtle once and decided to keep it cause of a long story but after I went to a couple of sites I got "yelled" at. So I was wondering if the same deal was with insects. Though I did found this dead butterfly on my driveway a few weeks ago and kept it and placed it in a jar for preservation. Anywho I just got out of frogs because I already feel comfortable with the frogs I have(2) and the turtles I got(2) so I just wanted to go into my last pet. I put a limit on how many I can keep. Just to be practical. So currently I have 2 tanks set up and a spare tank. Before being into spiders and tarantulas I actually wanted a mantis. I didnt care if they just sat there. I just liked that green color and those eyes. So then I went on to roaches, my mom got all mad at me and said are you drunk? You know cause where we used to live there were tons. So then I went down to slugs. I liked them except the part they friggin goo up the tank every day and its a pain to clean the goo. Then I went to centipedes(researching) and then Iam thought that these are vicious insects that if I make a wrong move(iam clumsy) I will get stung and be in serious doody. Then I went into ants. It went all fine untill I found out that they need a very large enclosure to set up a colony with a queen. Chances are they would escape. Although I do like them. I rather not go into that and find billions of ant in my carpet and trying to bite me and my rabbit. Butterflies and moths dont last longers than a couple of months. So then I went to spiders and found out that I liked what I saw. No constant feeding schedules(every day feedings), no extreme mess or smell(like a toad or turtle), some come in nice colors, some are cheap as well. So thats when I got into them. The only tarantula so far that caught my eye was that blue bottle green? Or something like that? When I looked into spiders I got interested by them right off the bat. Especially the agriopes. Ived seen their babies. But I figured there has to be atleast a couple of spiders that last longer than two years in captivity. Because there are thousand and thousands of them out there.

 

[Moltar]

Dang Sandeku, run-on sentence much? Try putting a blank line in between sentences every so often, it's called a new paragraph.

Anyway, you're not going to find much in the orb weaving, true spider arena that lives more that 2 years. That's just how it is, they burn fast and brightly. Tarantulas tend to be wayyy longer lived. The same with other mygalomorph spiders like trapdoors.

Although I keep mostly tarantulas, I do find it quite fulfilling to keep a few trues. A side effect of their short lifespan is that you get to see them going through life stages at a faster rate. It's much more interesting and makes up somewhat for their short lifespan. Do you know what a juvenile Argiope looks like? If you can find a young one you'll get a couple of seasons out of it. They definitely age more quickly when they're pumping out eggsacs nonstop.

One more thing, if you do decide to mail order a true orb weaver you might want to look at some Nephilia species. They are without a doubt the biggest, baddest and coolest of all the orb weavers. If you're going to pay the $$ for shipping and all you might as well get the big momma.

Whatever you decide to do, good luck with it!

 

[SandDeku]

I think I may go for a wolf spider, a black widow. Or something of the sort. If not ill probably go for a blue bottle green tarantula. I do like their colors. I also heard that for a tarantula they are somewhat active. Just as long as it doesnt jump at me and bite me then Iam okay. XD

sorry for the run ons. I kinda have bad grammer. Sorry. DxI am going to buy a spider book tonight

 

[Fyreflye]

I thought catching wild animals was bad.

Yes and no. Everyone has a different opinion on this, but i think that you'll find that invert keepers are a little less passionate about this than other hobbyists. Insect populations thrive easily, and taking a few specimens as pets generally won't harm the balance of the environment. As long as you're not releasing critters that are captive bred or un-native to the area, you shouldn't expect to get much grief here for keeping a spider that you find.

Give more thought to the Greenbottle Blue (scientific name is Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens), sometimes referred to as a GBB. This tarantula is very active (won't hide all the time), typically has a great appetite, attractive coloration and likes to web. These Ts are skittish, but usually not aggressive.

 

[ErikWestblom]

Is there a tarantula that looks like a spider? I mean it isnt "furry" and has that metalic look?

If this is what you're going for, try to get hold of a Dipluridae / Nemesiidae / Hexathelidae. The genera Macrothele (Hexathelidae) and Linothele (Dipluridae) are quite often for sale, fits your preferences (metallic/glossy and make sweet webs) and are just awesome spiders. Only "problem" is that they're not "true spiders", but primitive spiders, just like tarantulas.

If you have your eyes set on true spiders that live a few years and make webs, try finding a Kukulcania sp.

 

[SandDeku]

If this is what you're going for, try to get hold of a Dipluridae / Nemesiidae / Hexathelidae. The genera Macrothele (Hexathelidae) and Linothele (Dipluridae) are quite often for sale, fits your preferences (metallic/glossy and make sweet webs) and are just awesome spiders. Only "problem" is that they're not "true spiders", but primitive spiders, just like tarantulas.

If you have your eyes set on true spiders that live a few years and make webs, try finding a Kukulcania sp.

Iam okay if its not a true spider. I just dont like tarantulas that have that furry look. Like there was this blue one this guy showed me a while ago. Its hair looked combed. xD It was blue with white.

 

[SandDeku]

I found out a small spider I like. I went over to a site called pet bugs.com and I looked at their caresheets(mainly for picture referances) and saw a spider called "carolina wolf spider". I liked how it looks and its supposed behavior. Terrestrial and lives up to 3 years.

 

[SandDeku]

Can you keep fishing spiders?

 

[Moltar]

Fishing spiders are pretty easy to keep. They like it moist (obviously) and they'll want some vertical surface with some nooks and crannies to hide in. Also try to put some gress-like stuff in there. If you find a gravid one they make these crazy "nursery webs" to contain the slings until they're big enough to release.

I had a WC one that I kept for about 6 months. She gave me two eggsacs that I released into the marshland near my house once they started emerging. They're easy to keep, just keep them on the moist side and feed a lot.