Top Ten Theraphosids: Longest Lived

[JC]

1. Aphonopelma chalcodes(I think I read they could possibly live up to 40 years)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

 

[BrettG]

B smithi?I have heard about some very long lived examples... And as far as the chalcodes,I have one that was collected 16 years ago,and shes still in great shape.

 

[Mack&Cass]

G. rosea is certainly a candidate

 

[rustym3talh3ad]

G. rosea is certainly a candidate

+1

i hear all the time about guys who come in to the pet store saying "ive had my rosie since i was like 15 years old", and these guys are like mid to late 30's now lmao.

but one thing i have to ask is how much of this is proven data and how much is speculative theory? the hobby isnt old enough for us to know exactly how long they live.....and does anyone out there have a T that they could prove to be at least 20+ years old?

 

[Warren Bautista]

1. Aphonopelma chalcodes
2. Grammastola rosea
3. Aphonopelma hentzi
4

 

[ZergFront]

4. Brachypelma emilia

"The Dutchess" that was on The Tarantula Keeper's Guide was a B. emilia. She was cared for 19 years but they estimate her lifespan to have been longer since she was a large adult at the time they got her.

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=43297

 

[toidy]

5. phormictopus cancerides

 

[BorisTheSpider]

1. Spider-man (hatched 48 years ago)

 

[AbraxasComplex]

My B.smithi had been in captivity for nearly 35 years by the time she passed on. Stan Shultz owned her for 20 of those years. She was caught from the wild as an adult. So 35+, perhaps 40 years.

 

[Zoltan]

I'm too much of a sceptic for this thread.

 

[RichRollin]

5. phormictopus cancerides

Really, I never heard of them being in the Aphonopelma/Brachy/Gammostola lifespan range. I have a six year old female, so that would be great if true to know that she still has possibly 10+ years left in her.

 

[Toirtis]

My B.smithi had been in captivity for nearly 35 years by the time she passed on. Stan Shultz owned her for 20 of those years. She was caught from the wild as an adult. So 35+, perhaps 40 years.

I will back that....I have personally met multiple B. smithi that were 30+, and three emilia that were 30+.

 

[SmallX]

My wild guess is that any female T can live at least 20 years in proper living condition and won't live more than 100 years. Slower-growing species might live longer, so maybe G. rosea? The temperature can affect the lifespan of some bugs, so any one tried to refrigerate Ts to prolong their lifes?

 

[Moltar]

Funny... there are so few people in the world that have been keeping tarantulas for 35+ years that almost all of what is contained in this thread is hearsay. Still though, Aphonopelma (US, not the Central American ones), Grammostola and Brachypelma, in that order is my guess. Oh, C. crawshayi is probably in there somewhere too.

 

[Toirtis]

Funny... there are so few people in the world that have been keeping tarantulas for 35+ years that almost all of what is contained in this thread is hearsay.

No so few as you might think....although the hobby was young when I got my first 30 years ago, there were a fair number of keepers around. And back then, so many available specimens were large, mature adults (so one could assume 2-5 years of age), so one only need tack on 25+ years in captivity to suggest a circa 30 year-old T.

 

[Moltar]

Well it's good to know we have another true Theraphosid veteran here, Toirtis. I suppose I could have figured that out eventually by looking at your sig but, well, i'm just not that observant.

On another note, I really question whether P. cancerides lives 20+ years. They grow quite rapidly. I don't think a T with that sort of metabolism would live that long. I'd say they're more like, say, L. parahybana which I believe are more along the lines of 12-18 years. That's just me applying logic, not that I know from experience.

 

[The Spider Faery]

I've read that the female Eupalaestrus campestratus longevity is 25 years.

Also, I heard jon3800 mention in his latest feeding video on youtube that his Aphonopelma chalcodes is 20 years old.

 

[brian abrams]

Longest lived T's

1. Aphonapelma Sp.
2. Grammostola Sp.
3. Brachypelma Sp.