Nauphoeta cinerea Colony

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A short video on my Nauphoeta cinerea (Lobster Roach) colony. Tropical species found in the Carribean.

These roaches are slightly larger than B. lateralis and fast. Prolific breeders and multiply readily even with minimal care, females give live birth. Both males and females are winged. As with most of your common feeder roaches, a plastic bin or tote will work to contain them

This species climbs, so you’ll need a barrier of some kind like Vaseline or similar to keep them in. You can purchase slick roach barrier that I use from my website. The roach barrier we use withstands high temps and won’t run like Vaseline when the weather warms up. To keep roaches in, just smear a thin 2-3 inch layer around the top inside edge of your container. From what Ii have seen, they seem to want to stay in, more than climb out.

Use egg flats or similar to provide hiding areas for your N. cinerea. As you can see in the video, we’re using carboard cell partions instead egg flats. The adsvantage is they have more surface area to hang around and breed. The bin has better ventilation to prevent unwanted gases, etc. to build up. Much easier to clean and maintain.

Some people use substrate in there roach bins, such as bran, coco fiber, etc., but that makes it harder to keep the roach enclosure clean. It also difficult to get the baby N. cinerea roaches out of the bedding as they will hide in it.

N. cinerea roaches mature in about about 3-4 months from newborn to adult. Once females are gravid, they will carry young for approximately one month and give live birth to 30-40 nymphs every month or so. The nymphs are very small, about 3/16″, but grow quickly. As with most feeder roaches, a high protein diet, plus a good moisture source, like water gel, and your colony will be thriving in no time. It is best to allow your N. cinerea roach colony to become fully established before feeding heavily out of it. Six months is a good time to allow the colony to establish before feeding them off. The more adult breeders there are, the more young are produced.

Important note: Once your N. cinerea colony becomes sizeable, it is best to split them up. If you don’t, be prepared, sooner or later the the colony will literally explode. Roaches can produce a toxic gas that can and may kill your entire colony unless it is well ventilated. I had this experience with B. lateralis species. Lost 1000′s because I kept putting off the culling process. Once your colony is established, you’ll have plenty of different size feeders for your pets.

I should have N. cinerea for sale in a few months. I will do another update around May to show how the colony has grown.

Valid comments on/about/experience are all welcome. Spam, hate, offensive, etc… will be ignored/deleted. Your welcome to share videos as long as it is doesn’t violate any terms. Thanks for reading, Greg Hagedorn.

Aphonopelma chalcodes Care Sheet

Scientific Name: Aphonopelma chalcodes

Common Name: Desert Blonde Tarantula

Geographic Range: Southwestern United States, especially Arizona, New Mexico, and Southern California

Habitat/Species type: Terrestrial, New World

• Terrestrial refers to ground dweller, burrower.
• Arboreal refers to tree dwellers.
• New World species found in the Americas tend to be more docile, less venomous, kick urticating hairs for defense.
• Old World species found throughout the rest of the world, like Asia, Africa, Europe, etc… generally more aggressive, stronger venom, more apt to bite.

Temperature: 72°F-85°F Humidity: Moderate/High

Growth/Size: Fast / 6″ legspan Experience Level: Beginner

Temperament: Little aggressive
Tarantulas vary from docile to very aggressive, skittish, nervous, urticating hair flicker. Read “WARNING” at the end of this care sheet!

Food: Crickets and feeder roaches are most common in captivity. You can also offer mealworms, superworms, etc… DO NOT USE wild caught insects due to insecticides/pesticides and parasites threat.

Water: It is IMPORTANT to always keep an open water dish, full of water in your tarantulas enclosure at all times. This keeps them hydrated and helps keep humidity up! For slings, keep substrate moist. For juveniles and adults, water dish should be non-toxic, shallow and no wider than the body length of your tarantula. NEVER USE cotton balls or sponges to supply water or moisture, may promote mold and harmful bacteria that could be harmful to your tarantula and/or it’s enclosure.

Substrate: Peat moss, coco fiber or a mixer of peat moss, vermiculite. Kept on the damp side.
Provide 4″-12″ of substrate packed down for burrowers. Tarantulas that require low-moderate humidity should be kept on a dry substrate.

Enclosure/Cage: 5 gal tank, showbox size sterile plastic container, etc. is adequate.
Rule of thumb for enclosures is about 1½-2 times the width and length of your tarantula for terrestrial along with 3″-8″ of substrate packed for burrowers. For arboreals, they need more height then ground space, 1″-2″ of substrate. Provide long pieces of cork bard, branches, etc. to climb on for aboreals. You may provide a hide for a quick retreat if it is startled or feels threatened..

Longevity: 8 to 10 years for males and females to mature and Females live (up to 20 years).

Description:
Aphonopelma chalcodes cepholothorax is gray to dark brown and the abdomen is dark brown to black. Aphonopelma chalcodes often resides in burrows in the desert soil. It makes its burrows by digging itself under stones or by utilizing burrows discarded by rodents or other animals. It may live in the same burrow for decades. Males come out when mature after 10-12 years and search for a mate. Since it lives in the desert, Aphonopelma chalcodes is acclimated to harsh weather conditions. It does not require much water to survive, and can therefore survive in the extreme heat of the desert.

Keeping in captivity as pets:
Use medium to large Kritter Keepers, 5 gal tanks, etc… for juveniles, up to adults. This species prefers dry substrate, so moderate/high humidity levels will work and temps between 72F-85F work. Substrate can be peat moss, coco fiber or a mixer of peat moss, vermiculite mixture and should be at least 2″-4″ deep to provide adequate burrowing for slings and juveniles. Aphonopelma chalcodes can be a little more aggressive then other beginner species.

WARNING: Tarantulas are unpredictable and can change there disposition at anytime and may bite. So handling is never advised unless you’re experienced. Old World species tend to be more venomous (stronger venom) than New World species who have urticating hairs. Take all precautions, do some research on the species you plan to own, etc…before handling these wonderful creatures.

DISCLAIMER: Information contained herein represents various resources and my own personal experience with this particular species. Valid comments on/about/experience are all welcome. There are still allot unknown about certain species, so if you feel this article needs correcting/clarification, please comment below and I will make adjustments where necessary. Spam, hate, offensive, etc… will be ignored/deleted. Thanks for reading, Greg Hagedorn.

Grammostola pulchripes Care Sheet

Grammostola pulchripes - Chaco Golden Knee

Scientific Name: Grammostola pulchripes – formerly Grammostola aureostriata

 

Common Name: Chaco Golden Knee

Geographic Range: Paraguay, Argentina

Habitat/Species type: Terrestrial / New World

• Terrestrial refers to ground dweller, burrower.
• Arboreal refers to tree dwellers.
• New World species found in the Americas tend to be more docile, less venemous, kick urticating hairs for defense.
• Old World species found throughout the rest of the world, like Asia, Africa, Europe, etc… generally more aggressive, stronger venom, more apt to bite.

Temperature: 70*F-85*F Humidity: Low-Moderate

Growth Size: Fast / Up to 8.5″ legspan Experience Level: Beginner

Temperament: Docile, urticating hairs
Tarantulas vary from docile to very aggressive, skittish, nervous, urticating hair flicker. Read “WARNING” at the end of this care sheet!

Food: Crickets and roaches are most common in captivity. You can also offer mealworms, superworms, etc… DO NOT USE wild caught insects due to insecticides/pesticides and parasites threat.

Water: It is IMPORTANT to always keep an open water dish, full of water in your tarantulas enclosure at all times. This keeps them hydrated and helps keep humidity up! For slings, keep substrate moist. For juveniles and adults, water dish should be non-toxic, shallow and no wider than the body length of your tarantula. NEVER USE cotton balls or sponges to supply water or moisture, may promote mold and harmful bacteria that could be harmful to your tarantula and/or it’s enclosure.

Substrate: Peat moss, coco fiber or a mixer of peat moss, vermiculite.
Provide 4″-12″ of substrate packed down for burrowers. Tarantulas that require low-moderate humidity should be kept on a dry substrate.

Enclosure/Cage: Up to a 20 gal. tank.
Rule of thumb for enclosures is about 1½-2 times the width and length of your tarantula for terrestrial. For arboreal, they need more height then ground space, 1″-2″ of substrate. Provide long pieces of cork bard, branches, etc. to climb on for arboreal. You may provide a hide for a quick retreat if it is startled or feels threatened..

Longevity: ?

Description:
Grammostola pulchripes tends to be one of the more docile and calm species of tarantula and therefore makes a great first pet. Grammostola pulchripes is an opportunistic burrowing terrestrial tarantula. They tend to burrow when younger and adopt a pre-existing hide as its home when it begins to mature. It is quite flashy in appearance, bearing long light-colored hairs all over its body and gold stripes on its legs, particularly at the “knees”, hence “Golden Knee”.

Keeping in captivity as pets:
You can use medium to large Kritter Keepers, 5 gal tanks, etc… for juveniles, up to 20 gal. tank for adults. This species prefers the dry side, so moderate humidity levels will work and temps between 72*F-85*F work. Substrate can be peat moss, coco fiber or a mixer of peat moss, vermiculite mixture and should be at least 2″-4″ deep to provide adequate burrowing for slings and juveniles. Grammostola pulchripes makes a great display tarantula, they are very docile and perfect for any beginner. Care is very similar to the Grammostola rosea, except this species will eat more and grow much faster.

WARNING: Tarantulas are unpredictable and can change there disposition at anytime and may bite. So handling is never advised unless you’re experienced. Old World species tend to be more venomous (stronger venom) than New World species who have urticating hairs. Take all precautions, do some research on the species you plan to own, etc…before handling these wonderful creatures.

DISCLAIMER: Information contained herin represents various resources and my own personal experience with this particular species. Comments on/about/experience are all welcome. There are still allot unknown about certain species, so if you feel this article needs correcting/clarification, please comment below and I will make adjustments where necessary. Spam, hate, offensive, etc… will be ignored/deleted. Thanks for reading, Greg Hagedorn.

Ephebopus uatuman Care Sheet

Ephebopus uatuman - Emerald Skeleton

Scientific Name: Ephebopus uatuman

 

Common Name: Emerald Skeleton

Geographic Range: Brazil

Habitat/Species type: Terrestrial, New World

• Terrestrial refers to ground dweller, burrower.
• Arboreal refers to tree dwellers.
• New World species found in the Americas tend to be more docile, less venomous, kick urticating hairs for defense.
• Old World species found throughout the rest of the world, like Asia, Africa, Europe, etc… generally more aggressive, stronger venom, more apt to bite.

Temperature: 72°F-85°F Humidity: Moderate/High

Growth/Size: Fast / 3″ – 4″ legspan Experience Level: Beginner

Temperament: Skittish, nervous, defensive
Tarantulas vary from docile to very aggressive, skittish, nervous, urticating hair flicker. Read “WARNING” at the end of this care sheet!

Food: Crickets and feeder roaches are most common in captivity. You can also offer mealworms, superworms, etc… DO NOT USE wild caught insects due to insecticides/pesticides and parasites threat.

Water: It is IMPORTANT to always keep an open water dish, full of water in your tarantulas enclosure at all times. This keeps them hydrated and helps keep humidity up! For slings, keep substrate moist. For juveniles and adults, water dish should be non-toxic, shallow and no wider than the body length of your tarantula. NEVER USE cotton balls or sponges to supply water or moisture, may promote mold and harmful bacteria that could be harmful to your tarantula and/or it’s enclosure.

Substrate: Peat moss, coco fiber or a mixer of peat moss, vermiculite. Kept on the damp side.
Provide 4″-12″ of substrate packed down for burrowers. Tarantulas that require low-moderate humidity should be kept on a dry substrate.

Enclosure/Cage: 5 gal tank, showbox size sterile plastic container, etc. is adequate.
Rule of thumb for enclosures is about 1½-2 times the width and length of your tarantula for terrestrial along with 3″-8″ of substrate packed for burrowers. For arboreals, they need more height then ground space, 1″-2″ of substrate. Provide long pieces of cork bard, branches, etc. to climb on for aboreals. You may provide a hide for a quick retreat if it is startled or feels threatened..

Longevity: ?

Description:
Ephebopus uatuman tarantulas have a somewhat inappropriate “Common Name”, as the emerald sheen about the carapace and the greenish tint to the anterior dorsal side of the abdomen fade quickly after a molt, generally within a month. The “Skeleton” stripes on the legs are barely evident. Most of the time, they are generally a khaki to olive in color. After a fresh molt, the green hues are usually more evident, and the inside of legs have a more purple/blue tone to them. So to enjoy the full beauty of Ephebopus uatuman, you need to observe write after a molt, cause it won’t last long. Mature males are richer in color than there counterparts.

Keeping in captivity as pets:
Use medium to large Kritter Keepers, 5 gal tanks, etc… for juveniles, up to adults. This species prefers damp substrate, so moderate/high humidity levels will work and temps between 72F-85F work. Spritz substrate about once a week to help maintain a higher humidity. Substrate can be peat moss, coco fiber or a mixer of peat moss, vermiculite mixture and should be at least 2″-4″ deep to provide adequate burrowing for slings and juveniles. Ephebopus uatuman can be somewhat defensive species, not recommended for handling, due to they masy bite if they feel threatened. They tend to be skittish to nervouse in behavior.

WARNING: Tarantulas are unpredictable and can change there disposition at anytime and may bite. So handling is never advised unless you’re experienced. Old World species tend to be more venomous (stronger venom) than New World species who have urticating hairs. Take all precautions, do some research on the species you plan to own, etc…before handling these wonderful creatures.

DISCLAIMER: Information contained herein represents various resources and my own personal experience with this particular species. Valid comments on/about/experience are all welcome. There are still allot unknown about certain species, so if you feel this article needs correcting/clarification, please comment below and I will make adjustments where necessary. Spam, hate, offensive, etc… will be ignored/deleted. Thanks for reading, Greg Hagedorn.