Davus pentaloris
There are numerous tarantulas in the hobby that have a beautiful tiger striped pattern in the hobby, but very few of them whose pattern consists into adulthood. The Davus pentaloris or Guatemalan Tiger Rump Tarantula is one of said lucky species that also boasts a very manageable size of only reaching up to 5” in distal leg span. This is an incredibly tame but skittish terrestrial new world spider whose reasonable size tends to make it a better “holding” pet than other tarantulas in a hobbyist’s collection. That being said, it does have urticating hairs and is quite quick to throw them, so handle them at your own risk.
There are numerous tarantulas in the hobby that have a beautiful tiger striped pattern in the hobby, but very few of them whose pattern consists into adulthood. The Davus pentaloris or Guatemalan Tiger Rump Tarantula is one of said lucky species that also boasts a very manageable size of only reaching up to 5” in distal leg span. This is an incredibly tame but skittish terrestrial new world spider whose reasonable size tends to make it a better “holding” pet than other tarantulas in a hobbyist’s collection. That being said, it does have urticating hairs and is quite quick to throw them, so handle them at your own risk.
There are numerous tarantulas in the hobby that have a beautiful tiger striped pattern in the hobby, but very few of them whose pattern consists into adulthood. The Davus pentaloris or Guatemalan Tiger Rump Tarantula is one of said lucky species that also boasts a very manageable size of only reaching up to 5” in distal leg span. This is an incredibly tame but skittish terrestrial new world spider whose reasonable size tends to make it a better “holding” pet than other tarantulas in a hobbyist’s collection. That being said, it does have urticating hairs and is quite quick to throw them, so handle them at your own risk.
What's the ideal diet for a Guatemalan Tiger Rump Tarantula?
All Tarantulas can eat a variety of feeders. Stick to crickets, dubia roaches, silkworms, horned worms occasionally, and a superworm or mealworm as the occasional treat!
How should I keep a Guatemalan Tiger Rump Tarantula?
For this particular creature, you can start with a small Terrestrial Terrain enclosure if under a ¼” - 1.2” spiderling (sling), and when they get to be about 1” in size, you will want to upgrade to the medium or large Terrestrial Terrain enclosure. Feed them as slings once a week, twice if their opisthosoma (abdomen) looks small, but if the opisthosoma is wider than their prosoma (pneumothorax), then wait a couple of days to feed. For juveniles or adults, stick to feeding once a week, nothing larger than their opisthosoma. Make sure to keep a full water dish at all times; wider and deeper is fine. Your tarantula can’t drown; they float on water.
How long could a Guatemalan Tiger Rump Tarantula live?
Females are believed to live roughly 10+ years, with males reaching up to 3 years on average. All estimates are based on multiple sources.
Some photos provided by iNaturalist, credit to:
Tereso Hernández Morales, some rights reserved (CC BY)
David Umanzor, some rights reserved (CC BY)
