spider size confusion: help needed!!!

[suprafly]

i'm very confused when it comes to spider size. for example, the size for an a.versicolor is 4.5-5.5 inches, but is that the length of the body from tip of cephlathorax to tip of abdomen, or is it measured differently?!


also, the g.bird eater has a record legspan of 11 inches. is that the length of one leg, or is it the length of the two longest legs (legs three and four, methinks)?!



thanks.






suprafly out.........................................................

 

[defour]

In the tarantula hobby size is indicated by legspan. This usually defined as the distance from the tip of the first leg on one side to the tip of the fourth on the other, when the legs are outstretched. Obviously, in practice, legspan measurement is only approximate. When a body length figure is given, I believe standard procedure is to measure from the front of the carapace to the rear of the abdomen, excluding any appendages like spinnerets or chelicerae.

Steve

 

[Code Monkey]

Size is measured as the tip of the first leg to the tip of the opposite rear leg (e.g. right leg 1 to left leg 4). Just how stretched out the T should be for this length is somewhat debated.

 

[SpiderTwin]

Originally posted by Code Monkey
Size is measured as the tip of the first leg to the tip of the opposite rear leg (e.g. right leg 1 to left leg 4). Just how stretched out the T should be for this length is somewhat debated.

Isn't this measurement done when they are in a normal stance. Not real stretched out, and not when they have their legs tucked in?

 

[suprafly]

so that means that the a.versicolor is a relatively small tarantula?! do any of you guys have one of them?!



suprafly out................................................

 

[SpiderTwin]

Actually 4.5-5.5" would be the size of an adult versicolor. There are many tarantulas that grow larger, but I'd say the average adult T has a leg span somewhere between 5-7"

I'd say the leg span on my versi is about 4", and she is not yet a mature female.

 

[suprafly]

so would a full grown female fit in your palm or would she be bigger?!




suprafly out..................................................

 

[SpiderTwin]

Depending on how large your hands are, but yes, it should fit in the palm of your hand.

Are you thinking of getting a versi, if you are, you can't go wrong with one.

 

[belewfripp]

I usually do tip of leg 1 on one side to tip of leg 4 on the same side because I'm interested primarily in strictly how 'long' the spider is.

The diagonal measurement is more of legspan + body width than just how 'long' the spider is. The advantage is that it adds a further degree of the spider's size, for example a T. blondi who is merely 9 in. in strict legspan - tip of right leg 1 to tip of right leg 4 -will measure as larger with this measurement than a 9-in P. reglis measured in the same way and in the same 'degree' of stretch because the goliath is a bigger spider in terms of girth and width. Granted there is some murkiness there because the typical rest position of a regalis is different from that of a goliath, but even if you forced them to place their legs in the exact same arrangement I think the measurement would be a little larger for the 9-in. goliath than for the 9-in. regalis.

Now that I think about it, if you had figures for the width and the length of the spider you could calculate the diagonal measurement using the Pythagorean theorem. Useless, but interesting.

I'd like to see that in a geometry textbook though, a word problem like:

"Mary has a goliath birdeater tarantula that is 10.5 inches long and 3.5 inches wide, but Mary would like to be able to give a figure that would say how big her spider is overall. Using the Pythagorean theorem, devise such a figure so Mary can scare her grandmother back into the nursing home."


Adrian

 

[suprafly]

lol!


yup, i am thinking of buying one this week, but so far i can't find any websites that are in the us that would ship to new york. anywho, since it's summer and everything, would i still need to buy a hygrometer and a heating pad for her vivarium, and what size should i buy it at (this is going to be my first tarantula)??? also, should it be an undertank heating pad or one for the walls; and would a naturalistic wallpaper background make a vivarium look good???



p.s., how long do they live for???


suprafly out..................................................:?

 

[LPacker79]

yup, i am thinking of buying one this week, but so far i can't find any websites that are in the us that would ship to new york.

Check the dealer's area of this site. All of the online dealers in the U.S. will ship ANYWHERE in the U.S. They should all have A. versicolor on their price lists, they're in pretty high demand. As well they should be, beautiful little T's that they are. Damn, I really really need a versi =D

 

[LPacker79]

Oops! Just remembered........doesn't NY have a ban on tarantulas? Is that the whole state or just NYC? Maybe that's why you can't find a dealer to ship to NY.....god I feel dumb now.

 

[suprafly]

to tell you the truth, i don't know about that, but i meant that some of the websites i went to were mainly in the uk and some of them were just picture sites. i managed to get onto tarantulas.com two nights ago (same for petcenterusa.com), but whenever i try to go back, there is always some error like:



"the page is temp unavailable", or "you are forbidden to view this site".




however, i found one called midwest exotic pets, so i guess i'll use them. another q i have is should i buy live crickets for it, or should i feed it canned crickets?






suprafly out..................................................................

 

[Hairyspider]

re size

I was going to ask tham same questions, but was beaten to the punch.

This clears up some confusion for me as well.

I thought the size was determined by the overall body length, not incl the legs, seems more logical, for me any ways. If a spider is 4-5 in in body length, that is a better mental picture, then you can figure at least 2-3 in of legs, or more depending on the species. If its an aboreal, the legs are tipically longer than those of terestrials(correct)?

like with the pokies, (don't have this species) so correct me if I'm wrong. the pokies looks to be mostly legs, with a slender body, so a 11in leg span would be a impresive T's, but then compared to the A. geniculata, with a leg span of approx 8-9 in, and a very robust body, the later seems to be bigger.

I guess this topic can fall in the same debate as evolution vers the bible.:?

 

[chuck]

i think i should email this thread to the guy who recently sold me my last 2 Ts. a GBB and red knee that were 5-6", or so he said. there is no way he could have gotten 5-6" by any means, unless he was measuring the circumference

 

[Hairyspider]

another thought

I was just looking at my Avic, it looks like leg 1 is about an inch, and leg 4 on opposite side is also 1 in, so would that be a 2 inch leg span, or do you consider the 3/4-1 in span of the carapice, in the calculation:?

later

William

 

[Hairyspider]

re another thought

just answered my last question my self. Its like the wing span of a bird is measured from the armpit (if you will) to the tip of the flight feather X2, not incl the body=D

Later

William

 

[suprafly]

but what size should i buy???




anywho, i guess the armpit theory must be correct, cause i was even having confusion with the q-whateva dinosaur that had a wingspan of forty feet. it thought that one wing was forty feet and not the two together. if it was the way i thought, then that would be one huge buzzard!!!







suprafly out.......................................................................

 

[LPacker79]

i managed to get onto tarantulas.com two nights ago (same for petcenterusa.com), but whenever i try to go back, there is always some error

Yeah I haven't been able to get on tarantulas.com since yesterday morning.

however, i found one called midwest exotic pets

I got my last order from Art and was extremely happy.