Verifying mature male Psalmopoeus cambridgei :)

[Phases]

So I pulled out my Trinidad Chevron for the first time so I could get a good look at him and see if his latest molt resulted in the hooking out, which we suspected but couldn't tell though the glass where he always hangs.

I have determined that it's pretty night and day, he has indeed! On the off chance I've made an embarrassing wrong assumption (as I've never seen a MM before) do let me know!

This video displays handling of a tarantula. Please do not handle your Ts without full confidence
in both yourself and them, and full understandings of the risks involved to both you and them.​

So a couple quick questions for the knowledgeable if you don't mind.

1. The chevron pattern has disappeared it seems, on the abdomen. Is that just.. part of it with these?

2. I understand the males of this species lives only 3 or so years. About how old are they, or would one guess if they didn't raised it from birth, when they mature? I'm curious how much more time we might have with our buddy.

Thank you,

 

[Venom1080]

Yes, mature.

I'd send him off to @cold blood if he wants him.

 

[Phases]

Cool, thanks. It's my first mature male. I don't know how to tell if a female is mature or not, I could have a few of those..

I've also never sent off a tarantula.. is shipping adults hard? Do you mean I assume to mate and HOPEFULLY get him back? Hmm.

 

[Tia B]

Cool, thanks. It's my first mature male. I don't know how to tell if a female is mature or not, I could have a few of those..

I've also never sent off a tarantula.. is shipping adults hard? Do you mean I assume to mate and HOPEFULLY get him back? Hmm.

When you ship a tarantula as a breeding loan, you generally agree on the terms beforehand. If you want him back after the breeding (assuming there's no complications), then just make that clear to whoever you're shipping to and I'm sure they'd be willing to oblige.

 

[Nightstalker47]

So I pulled out my Trinidad Chevron for the first time so I could get a good look at him and see if his latest molt resulted in the hooking out, which we suspected but couldn't tell though the glass where he always hangs.

I have determined that it's pretty night and day, he has indeed! On the off chance I've made an embarrassing wrong assumption (as I've never seen a MM before) do let me know!

This video displays handling of a tarantula. Please do not handle your Ts without full confidence
in both yourself and them, and full understandings of the risks involved to both you and them.​

So a couple quick questions for the knowledgeable if you don't mind.

1. The chevron pattern has disappeared it seems, on the abdomen. Is that just.. part of it with these?

2. I understand the males of this species lives only 3 or so years. About how old are they, or would one guess if they didn't raised it from birth, when they mature? I'm curious how much more time we might have with our buddy.

Thank you,

Definitely mature. Nice looking specimen.

 

[14pokies]

Yes, mature.

I'd send him off to @cold blood if he wants him.

Yea sure coldblood.. Cuz I don't need MM P.cam..

 

[The Grym Reaper]

I don't know how to tell if a female is mature or not, I could have a few of those..

Females, if I remember correctly, mature at around 75% of max size (give or take).

You can check if a female has matured by examining the moult, if the spermathecae are sclerotised (darkened/opaque, this is caused by the conversion of the tissue into sclerotin) then she's sexually mature, if they are still clear then she isn't ready.

 

[Venom1080]

Yea sure coldblood.. Cuz I don't need MM P.cam..

Lol I thought about you immediately after, scrolling through your feed.

 

[Venom1080]

Cool, thanks. It's my first mature male. I don't know how to tell if a female is mature or not, I could have a few of those..

I've also never sent off a tarantula.. is shipping adults hard? Do you mean I assume to mate and HOPEFULLY get him back? Hmm.

MMs are useless beyond breeding to me. I never ask for them back unless I have other people in line for it.

No, not hard. Just watch a few videos about it. Same process every time. This time of year you need a heat pack. And a good set of shipping terms to stand by.(more important if you're selling)

 

[cold blood]

The chevron pattern has disappeared it seems, on the abdomen. Is that just.. part of it with these?

Yep, makes it very easy, even with a dorsal view.

I understand the males of this species lives only 3 or so years. About how old are they, or would one guess if they didn't raised it from birth, when they mature?

Males generally mature in just 10-14 months (usually IME less than a year). Generally IME, MMs live anywhere from 4 months to a year and a half.

send him off to @cold blood if he wants him.

I have a MM waiting for my AF to molt.

I've also never sent off a tarantula.. is shipping adults hard? Do you mean I assume to mate and HOPEFULLY get him back? Hmm

No, not hard at all. Faster ts like a cam can actually be easier to pack at times, as they generally dive right in with minimal motivation.

Cuz I don't need MM P.cam..

Well send him off to 14.

Females, if I remember correctly, mature at around 75% of max size (give or take).

I think less than that...IME closer to 60% probably.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

I think less than that...IME closer to 60% probably.

I think you replied the same percentage on a similar post a while back but I couldn't remember for sure so I went with 75% just to be on the safe side

 

[Swoop]

Anyone have a good side by side comparison of MM P. cam and P. irminia? One of my "mystery box" T's is a tiny MM that the seller said was a 'suntiger' but I'm not so sure.

 

[cold blood]

mm irminia

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• cold blood
• Apr 13, 2017
• 4

MM irminia on loan from viper69

 

[cold blood]

mm cambridgei

 

[Phases]

Awesome guys thanks, you've given us a lot to think about!

 

[Phases]

So, slightly torn, because these are basically pets to us. I hate to ship him off and never see him again... but really finding the right breeder that takes care to ensure he might survive each mating, and you know keeps him in a nice space and doesn't just shove them in a small container on a shelf.. might not be so bad.

One could argue for the Ts sake, to ship him off to do what nature intended him to do and live the good life for his last days (hubba hubba) might be a good thing, with a good return for us.

 

[Phases]

... and my wife says it is up to me to figure out so.. cards are on the table IF there is someone here who is reputable as far as taking care of their breeders and not just watching them getting eaten with glee.. shoot me a PM or hit me up on insta/YT if you for some reason rather.

How many surviving spiderlings does this species expect?

 

[CyclingSam]

I would send him off if I were you. I tried keeping some MMs when I was younger and they constantly were pacing and trying to get out. I recently sent out my first MM. It happened to be a P. cam too. I sent it to @Trenor. He bred him with his MF and she produced a sac. It has been fun following the process. I really hope the sac turns out to be a good one.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

I hate to ship him off and never see him again...

Tbh, I think I'd hate it more to keep one and watch him slowly die without at least letting him attempt to fulfil his duties as a male, I'd rather he get his freak on or get eaten trying.

 

[Phases]

To be honest with you guys, my wife and I have been talking and we agree. I don't want him cooped up unable to do what he's needing to do and watching them die is sad.. we've had one natural death so far and I don't like it.

So I might reach out to Tanya or.. you know, someone.. and see if I can work something out. It was proposed that I find a mature female but I'm not sure if I'm ready for that yet. Anybody know offhand how many spiderlings tend to survive a sack out of this species?