what is charlotte?

[Karity]

had her for 5 years now - approx age 15 years old - told she was a chilean orange knee but haven't found anything online called that. got 411?

 

[Raveness]

That is a Brachypelma emilia

(mexican redleg tarantula)

she is a beauty btw... I really want to get one.

 

[MrT]

Welcome to arachnopets,
She looks likes a B. emilia to me. The fifth segment of each leg is red on these. And they have reddish hairs on the abdomen. Its from around Durango in western Mexico. Its also called Mexican Red-leg..


Ernie

 

[Karity]

Thanks, I have heard that before but didn't want to believe I got suckered. We paid alot for Charlotte and from what I understand the emilias aren't exactly a costy breed. None the less she has been a fab-o pet.

 

[Immortal_sin]

actually, they are on CITES, so they can be fairly expensive, especially for large juveniles, and adult females. I have a 1.5" sling that is just getting adult colors, and I paid $13 for it when it was about 1/4". Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but adult females go for well over $100.
I guess it depends on what you mean by 'expensive'!
Nevertheless....she is beautiful!
Welcome to the boards BTW

EDIT:
PS- psstt....take the sponge out of the water bowl!

 

[Karity]

First day on this site and have never done this bulletin board thing. How rude for them to call me a peon! Uninformed maybe but definately NOT a peon! Whoever did that - get over yourself!

 

[Lopez]

Originally posted by Karity
First day on this site and have never done this bulletin board thing. How rude for them to call me a peon! Uninformed maybe but definately NOT a peon! Whoever did that - get over yourself!

LOL, it's nothing personal, it gets better the more posts you have
You have peons, knights, lords...it's a sort of medieval hierarchy theme

You might have paid a lot for her (as stated) because she is CITES protected. This means that harvesting them cheaply from the wild is illegal - all spiders must be bred from captive stock. This can push prices up

 

[Karity]

I'm sorry Immortal but can you explain what you just wrote in plain english for a novice. We paid less than 200 for her but for a spider at the time it seemed costly. I'm sure once you are deep into the "scene" that seems fair for what you get.

 

[belewfripp]

I think what she means is they can be had for cheap prices if you're willing to get one that is very small, whereas the larger the specimen, the more expensive it is going to be. This is true in general for all tarantulas, but especially for species like Bracypelma emilia and Brachypelma smithi that are protected as an endangered species and currently can't be imported from Mexico at all. Even captive-bred specimens have to have documentation and paperwork when passing through customs between one country and another, and that paperwork takes time to acquire, as well as money, so that adds to the price. If you bought her anywhere from 4 inches in legspan on up I would imagine a price of at least $100.00, more if she was guaranteed female, and even more if she was captive-bred.


So basically, though B. emilia isn't that expensive, in general, to acquire, because a little half-inch spiderling can be had for $20.00, if you bought her full-grown or close, and especially if she is female, the price is not going to be cheap at all. So I wouldn't say you got suckered.


Adrian

 

[Karity]

Thanks Adrian,
She is a "handfull" and was not much smaller when I bought her. Since she is definately over 15 years old doesn't that guarantee that she is female? I was told she should live approx 50 years. Is that off?

 

[belewfripp]

If she's that old it is probably a safe bet that she's female. I have heard potential lifespans for them up to 40 years. 50 seems a little high, but they definitely live a long, long time so I wouldn't rule it out as a maximum.

Adrian

 

[Dafne]

Beautiful T Congratulations Karity and welcome here
I have got two B. emilia as well but they are still small, about 1"... Can not wait till they will be that size as yours

 

[That Guy]

awesome T.....lol! sorry.. But a chilean orange knee?? About 2 years ago.. I would have fallen for the same thing.. Dont trip.. And how much did you pay for her?(Im assuming its a she, if its 15 years old)

 

[conipto]

Originally posted by Karity
I'm sorry Immortal but can you explain what you just wrote in plain english for a novice. We paid less than 200 for her but for a spider at the time it seemed costly. I'm sure once you are deep into the "scene" that seems fair for what you get.

OK, let me put this into perspective for you, since Holley is gone.

CITES = Convention for the International Trade of Endangered Species.

In a nutshell, they are illegal to export across country borders. This makes the price of them go up quite a bit, as they either have to be captive bred, or require a ton of paperwork.

Your 'less than 200' may or may not have been a fair price.. How big was she, was she captive bred, and most importantly.. was it worth it to YOU?

Here's a snippet from John Hoke's E-spiderworld with some prices right now of Brachypelma genus spiders:

Brachypelma albopilosum, Honduran Curlyhair, 3", $45
Brachypelma angustum, Guatemalan Redump, 4", $175
Brachypelma auratum, Mexican Flame Knee, 5.5" $475
Brachypelma baumgarteni, Mexican Orangebeauty, 5", $475
Brachypelma emilia, Mexican Redleg, 3", $155
Brachypelma epicureanum, Belizean Black, 4", $185
Brachypelma pallidum, Rose Grey, 5", $185
Brachypelma sabulosum, Guatemalan Redrump, 5", $375
Brachypelma smithi, Mexican Red Knee, 3", $125
Brachypelma species, Guatemalan Rust Rump, 5", $225
Brachypelma species, Honduran Rust Rump, 4.5", $200
Brachypelma vagans, Mexican Red Rump, 3.5", $145

Some are more rare than others, but as you can see, they are indeed expensive as adults. To top that off, you paid pet-shop price for it. Meaning it would be more expensive than if you had gone through a dealer nowadays.

Bottom line, I've spent more than 200 bucks on a single night of debauchery before.. And I'd much rather have a nice adult B. emilia that made me happy for several years. If you've had her 5 years, and estimate 15 years, she may live another 7, or 8 years still. Maybe even longer. Enjoy the girl, and don't worry about money you spent on her five years ago.

By the way..
Welcome to the board, "Peon"

Bill

 

[Immortal_sin]

thanks Adrian...yes, that is what I meant. Karity...sorry for not being clear as mud
I would say that she is worth what you paid for her, definately

 

[Karity]

Originally posted by conipto

Your 'less than 200' may or may not have been a fair price.. How big was she, was she captive bred, and most importantly.. was it worth it to YOU?

Now that I have seen your reference material I got a steal! Charlotte is probably 6ish inches across and her colors look a whole lot better once she molts. It has been over a year and she is definately due to "shed" soon. Who knows if she was captive bred - that definately was not a question I asked and she is worth every penny I paid for her. I didn't realize what a booming hobby t's are. My hubby is into reef tanks and this sounds about as serious but with less daily maintanence.

Does anyone know of a place that I can find a fun style of home for her? Right now she is in a boring 20 gallon with screen top. Anything snazzy out there?
K.

 

[atavuss]

welcome to the forum, Karity. very nice emilia you have there, the black triangle on the carapace is another easy way to ID that species.
the prices that were from Hoke's site might be a wee bit on the high side, but he carries t's that are not commonly available at any price.
I would like to recommend two books:
"the tarantula keeper's guide" by schultz and shultz
"tarantulas and other arachnids" by marshall
both books are available at your favorite book retailer for around 20.00 total for the two. lots of interesting information and pictures of other species and their care.
Ed

 

[atavuss]

Originally posted by Karity
Does anyone know of a place that I can find a fun style of home for her? Right now she is in a boring 20 gallon with screen top. Anything snazzy out there?
K. [/B]

snazzy? as in naturalistic?
here is a row of three 10 gallon terrariums with "foamariums". left to right (top shelf):
adult female brachypelma boehmei (mexican fireleg)
adult female grammostola rosea (normal phase chilean rosehair)
adult female aphonopelma chalcodes (desert or arizona blond)
Ed

 

[Karity]

That is a HOT set up for your animals. I really like how you set up the burrows so you can still see the t's. Very creative. I was looking for something a little less natural as far as the background goes but love the way you set up the burrows. Impressive!

 

[atavuss]

Originally posted by Karity
That is a HOT set up for your animals. I really like how you set up the burrows so you can still see the t's. Very creative. I was looking for something a little less natural as far as the background goes but love the way you set up the burrows. Impressive!

Thanks.....those are foamariums, they are a block of foam that has been carved with a full cave or a half cave and then painted with a non-toxic paint. they used to be for sale on Ebay, don't know if they are still available or not. I have a 20 long that I set up with 2 foamarium caves, one in either end. I cut 2-10 gallon foamariums down to fit the 20 long for a "red" phase rose hair (g. rosea). most of my t's and inverts are in kritter keepers with a few inches of forest bed for substrate, a coconut half for a hide, and a water dish.......very basic (I don't have enough room for over 100 ten gallon terrariums).
BTW, the t's in the foamarium equipped enclosures rarely use the "caves".
a lot of the things that are sold for reptiles and fish aquariums will work for t's also.
I used to use the bark that you have in your emilia's enclosure many years ago, but IMHO it might be too abrasive for your t's underside although you have used it for 5 years already without ill effect.
Ed