Phrynus whitei care and enclosure advice

[samsonjs]

Hi everyone. First time posting so let me know if I’m in the wrong place or am doing something wrong. After wanting one for a while, I found an Amblypygid for sale at the local pet store and decided to go through with getting one. It was advertised as Damon variegatus but I was informed by someone on Reddit that it is actually Phrynus whitei. I changed the enclosure it came with a bit to give it more vertical surface to climb, and misted it down because it seemed somewhat too dry for a tropical Amblypygid. I was curious what more experienced Amblypygid keepers think of my current setup and what changes I should make.

here’s the current enclosure. I added the foam pieces for more room to climb around and repositioned the cork bark pieces. Yesterday (the day I bought it) I misted the enclosure and today I misted again and used a wash bottle to soak water deeper into the substrate.
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Here’s the Amblypygid itself. I’d estimate body length is about 1/4 inch or a little under. The enclosure (came with the animal) is about 3 by 4 by 4 inches. It seems like I may want to upgrade to a taller enclosure, but I’m not sure at this point.

this was the enclosure when I bought it. I thought there wasn’t enough airspace between the substrate and the lid.

I was also curious about feeding and watering. Am I supposed to mist with the Amblypygid in the enclosure, or take it out? I thought maybe it would bother it if it got misted on. Second, feeding. When I bought it, the store employee said it had been fed that day, and there were two crickets still in the enclosure. They are still there as of today, and I saw the Amblypygid run into one at one point but not eat it. Should I assume it’s eaten if it wanted to and just take them out? I also thought they might be too big. They’re maybe a bit bigger than the prosoma which I’ve heard is a rule of thumb.

Anyway, sorry for the long post. I’d love to hear everyone’s feedback and advice if you’re willing.

Thanks everyone

 

[that1ocelot]

Hey! I am that person from Reddit haha.
I'll speak more specifically here, and I'm sure others will chime in with their opinion.

The enclosure is fine. Really, with Amblypygi, the checklist is "Can they climb?" "Can they molt?" "Do they feel secure?" And that's it. Many of the most successful keepers I know (including myself) keep them quite barebones, but yours isn't complicated enough to cause problems.

In terms of misting - you don't need too! As long as the substrate is consistently moist, evaporation will do the rest. I've never misted my animals, just pour water into a corner and forget about it until it's looking a bit on the dryer side.

For feeding - I find that after they're messed around with (a rehouse or move) they take awhile to settle in. Your animal might not be eating for this reason, I've found this variant of P. Whitei to be very good eaters once they're established. A good rule of thumb is that if something isn't eaten in 24 hours (and the animal can easily find the prey) take it out and try again in a few days. Ambly can go a long time without food, it's no biggie.