Chilean rose tarantula

The Chilean rose tarantulas with the scientific name of Grammostola rosea are also named the Chilean red-haired tarantula, Chilean fire tarantula, or rose hair tarantula and are native to America and Europe. Their hard-shelled or brown to black-colored upper bodies have rose-hued hair on them. Besides this, the Chilean rose tarantula spiders with four pairs of legs have almost four appendages called pedipalps and chelicerae near their mouths. Females appear to have a longer lifespan of about twenty years, while males do not live a much longer life. Here, we are going to discuss many exciting facts about these spiders.

Chilean rose tarantula habitat

These spiders are habitat to South America, Northern Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, and European scrub regions and deserts. The Chilean rose tarantula habitat also includes burrows which they build themselves and use to live there. In contrast, they have not been observed to live in burrows in captivity. These animal species are mostly seen to be active at the time of evening or night and are available in many pet stores worldwide.

Chilean rose tarantula size

These animal species with medium-sized bodies have an average legspan of about five inches in the case of females. If we talk about Chilean rose tarantula males, they have quite longer legs than females with a legspan of up to nine centimeters or 3.5 inches. These spiders also appear to have two fangs, eight eyes, and a small pair of sensory appendages known as pedipalps. Instead of this, the long bristle-like hairs are also present on their bodies’ exteriors. 

Chilean rose tarantula behavior

As they are very calm, tolerant, and docile spiders, they can be easily handled. They appear to use their body size to capture prey. Although the Chilean rose tarantulas are not so aggressive, excessive handling can make their temperament low. As a result of this, they will start biting, causing burning, itching, pain, and redness.

Chilean rose tarantula adaptations

There are present many Chilean rose tarantula behavioral adaptations, some of which include that they use their fangs and also raise their front legs while defending themselves. These spiders appear to act defensive for many days after the molting process. Furthermore, they are nocturnal and spend most of their time in cool burrows, moist shelter, and traveling at night searching for their mate or prey.

Facts about Chilean rose tarantulas 

Some of the fascinating Chilean rose tarantula fun facts are as given below:

1. They throw urticating or irritating hairs from their body while defending themselves
2. The male ones seem to have more energetic hair colors than females
3. In case of these spiders, the males often die after mating, or sometimes females kill them 
4. Their females produce a huge egg sac of about five hundred spiderlings after having the mating process
5. These tarantulas’ bite is just like a bee sting and cannot kill a person
6. Unlike other tarantulas, they are very gentle and slower; thus are easy to be handled

Chilean rose tarantula diet

Like all other animal species, these tarantulas also require a proper diet for their survival. The Chilean rose tarantula diet includes various small vertebrates, i.e. lizards, frogs, mice, crickets and other invertebrates. They use to hunt at night time and capture their prey using body size. Other animals like other animal species also feed them.

Chilean rose tarantula predators

The animals that eat these spiders and other species are known as predators. Their predators include hunting wasps, large mammals, reptiles, etc. Furthermore, researches have shown that other tarantulas also eat these spiders. The males appear to have a short life span of about five years as compared to females.

Chilean rose tarantula bite

Like other tarantulas, these Chilean rose tarantulas are not so aggressive but sometimes start biting during extreme handling conditions. But there are present multiple toxins in their bite, which is enough to digest and immobilize prey and deter predators. This bite is not dangerous to humans but will only cause pain, redness, itching, and burning.

Chilean rose tarantula breeding

These spiders have an incubation period of six weeks, and female ones lay about 50 to 200 eggs after mating. These eggs become fertilized after passing out from their mothers’ bodies. Researches have also shown that these female spiders kill males after mating; thus, males have a smaller lifespan. The Chilean rose tarantula cost is not so high; that’s why these animal species can be kept as pets.

Chilean rose tarantula pets at home

Keeping a Chilean rose tarantula is considered a good option because these spiders are inexpensive, docile, and have low-maintenance. Many people keep them as pets because of their attractive coloration and ethical behavior. In addition to this, they take good care of these spiders by providing them with proper diet and care. But they are not suitable to be kept as pets for beginners as they can become aggressive on too much handling; thus can bite.

Chilean rose tarantula care

As these tarantulas are desert creatures, they do not live in areas with high humidity. The Chilean rose tarantulas must be provided with proper care. The people who keep them as pets must not use spray or mist on any part of their cages. Their enclosures or cages must be escape-proof. You must feed them with pesticide-free insects and live crickets. However, supplying them with proper diet and water can increase their lifespan.

FAQ’s 

Sometimes the people get confused even after reading exciting facts about these animal species and start raising some questions to make their minds clear. So, the answers to some of those raised questions are as given below:

How big does a Chilean rose tarantula get?

The males also appear to use pedipalps as a part of reproduction. These medium-sized tarantula species have an average legspan of about 3.5 inches in the case of males, while females can have legs as long as five inches. These females also kill their mates after mating with them.

How often do Chilean rose tarantulas eat?

These spiders use to eat about three to five large crickets or other prey items a week. You must feed these animal species about twice a week and remove the uneaten prey after twenty-four hours. Some of these rose eaters appear to eat more amount of food while some eat a lesser amount.

Are rose hair tarantulas friendly?

Researches have shown that these spiders are the most docile of all other tarantulas and have a very calm nature. They also are of low-temperament but sometimes become aggressive. The females even fight with each other if left in the same enclosure. These females too will eat males in anger if they are not left alone. That’s why these spiders must be kept alone.

Do Chilean rose tarantulas burrow?

As these spiders are juveniles and terrestrial tarantulas, they do like to burrow. You should allow them to do this by giving them only two substrates. So, a soil mix called spider life is the best substrate to tarantulas.

Do pet tarantulas recognize their owners?

Although these spiders have many unique characters and personalities, they do not remember their owners very well. They even cannot learn about who is handling them.

What do you feed a Chilean rose tarantula?

The Chilean rose tarantulas’ diet mostly includes various small vertebrates, i.e. lizards, frogs, mice, crickets, and other invertebrates. So, you must also feed them with live cricket and other giant pesticide-free insects as their food source.

Are Chilean rose tarantulas dangerous?

As these Chilean rose tarantulas are very tolerant and docile, they can be handled very quickly. Instead of all this, they can become aggressive on excessive handling and start biting. Although their bite is not so poisonous to humans, it can cause pain, itching, redness, and burning.

Do tarantulas like being petted?

Yes, these spiders can be petted, and you can increase their lifespan up to twenty-five years. These can be taken to school and group demonstrations because of their docile nature. They are very friendly and can bite only on provoking them.

Do Chilean rose tarantulas need humidity?

As these tarantulas are desert creatures, they do not live in places with high humidity. You must also not keep them on the damp substrate.

Conclusion

As we have discussed many interesting facts and information about these animal species, there are also some threats to them. For example, their predators include hunting wasps, large mammals, reptiles, etc. Furthermore, they are not still kept in the list of endangered species. Many people keep them as pets, but it requires proper care and diet. You must keep these Chilean rose tarantula spiders alone because they can kill each other while fighting. You must also feed them with live crickets twice a week and place them in the habitat with lesser humidity levels.