Tarantula “Tuesday”: Metallic Pink Toe

I know this isn’t the normal Tarantula Tuesday post (mainly because it’s Thursday), but I can’t leave you all without another tarantula species right? So this week, we will talk about the metallic pink toe (Avicularia metallica).

Someone had a little too much fun webbing

Tarantulas in the genus Avicularia are arboreal, meaning that they spend the majority of their time living in the trees. They are fantastic climbers and can climb up glass without a problem. There is always a risk of falling, but arboreal tarantulas lose their grip less frequently and seem to be more resistant to falls than their terrestrial counterparts.

Avics are generally considered to be a good beginner arboreal tarantula and the A. metallica and A. avicularia are both pretty easy to find. Care is a bit more difficult than other beginner species (such as the Brachypelma that I highlighted over the last two weeks), but it is still a fairly easy tarantula to keep.

To start things off, you need an enclosure with more height than floor space, so your Avic can climb around to its little open heart’s content. I personally keep mine in a snack container that I got for a couple dollars from Walmart (kind of like these). Once they have that space, you can decorate with cork bark, branches, really just about anything, as long as it’s clean. You can also choose to put nothing in and your Avic will web it’s own home onto a wall.

Avics usually tolerate handling well, though they can be a bit skittish. Biting is rare since they would rather just flee. But one thing that they commonly do is shoot their frass (fancy entomology word for poop). My A. metallica has quite the range and can fire frass well over a foot. She does that every time I get her out, but quickly calms down and just wanders.

Note: Handle tarantulas at your own risk!

To care for Avics, you have to keep two things in mind: humidity has to be kept fairly high (~70-80%) and good ventilation is an absolute must have. If there isn’t good ventilation, then the stagnant air in the enclosure will eventually suffocate your tarantula or cause mold to grow in its book lungs. They do like it on the warmer side, with temperatures in the mid-70s to mid-80s being ideal, but not necessary.

More info about the A. metallica and other Avics can be found here

References:

“Tarantula and Scorpion Handler’s Blog: Avicularia Tarantula Caresheet.” Tarantula and Scorpion Handler’s Blog: Avicularia Tarantula Caresheet. N.p., 31 Mar. 2011. Web. <http://tarantula-and-scorpion-handlers-blog.blogspot.com/2011/03/avicularia-tarantula-caresheet.html&gt;.

Schultz, Stanley A., and Marguerite J. Schultz. The Tarantula Keeper’s Guide. Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s Educational Series, 1998. Print.