Origin And Natural Habitat
The Blue Fang Tarantula is primarily found in French Guiana. However, there have been sightings of the tarantula in nearby regions. This tarantula species usually inhabits damp and tropical regions, often close to bodies of water. As a terrestrial species, blue fang tarantulas tend to inhabit lower elevations on the ground.
Scientific Classification
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum | Chelicerata |
| Class | Arachnida |
| Order | Araneae |
| Infraorder | Mygalomorphae |
| Family | Theraphosidae |
| Genus | Ephebopus |
| Species | Ephebopus Cyanognathus |
Species Overview
| Common Name | Blue Fang Tarantula |
| Other Names | Blue Fang Skeleton |
| Origin | French Guiana |
| Category | New World |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial Arboreal Tendencies When Young |
| Temperament | Defensive |
| Minimum Tank Size | 4 Times The Size Of The Tarantula (In Horizontal Space) |
| Temperature | 71°-82° F (22°-28° C) |
| Humidity | 65-80% |
| Diet | Carnivorous |
| Leg Span | Up to 5 inches (12 cm) |
| Urticating Hairs | Yes |
| Venomous | Yes |
| Growth Rate | Fast |
| Lifespan | Females: 12 – 15 years Males: 3-4 years |
| Experience Required | Experienced |
Appearance And Size
This tarantula derives their name from the blue fangs on their mandibles. The blue coloration of this tarantula specie’s fangs is also their most distinctive feature, especially when compared to the Emerald Skeleton Tarantula, which looks exactly like them but without the iconic blue fangs. However, it’s worth noting that adult male Blue Fang Tarantulas have purple fangs instead of blue ones. Blue Fang Tarantulas are also not particularly large. On average, adult Blue Fang Tarantulas have a body length of around 5 inches (12cm).
The deep blue color of the Blue Fang Tarantula’s fangs is due to the presence of deep-blue hairs on the cheliceral basal segment. As such, the blue fang tarantula’s fangs are not actually blue in color. Additionally, the color of these hairs may change from deep violet-blue to a lighter blue or turquoise when illuminated from above. Interestingly, these hairs appear entirely colorless and transparent when viewed under transparent light.
The Blue Fang Tarantula is well-known for its distinctive fangs, as well as its attractive coloration and fuzzy appearance. These tarantulas exhibit a stunning color palette that includes shades of yellow, black, green, and orange. Additionally, they have distinctive golden rings encircling their legs and pedipalps. Adult Blue Fang Tarantulas have a brown carapace with some yellowish-greenish regions, while their opisthosoma is predominantly brown-black with a unique greenish stripe running down the center. Blue fang tarantula spiderlings are not the same color as the adults. The spiderlings have brightly colored abdomens that are bright metallic green, which changes as they mature.
Housing
The enclosure used to house this tarantula should be at least at least 4 times the size of the spider in horizontal space. The enclosure’s size doesn’t matter much, though, as long as it is tall enough to hold enough substrate since blue fang tarantulas mainly burrow.
The enclosure must have adequate ventilation to prevent moisture buildup, as well as a secure lid to keep the tarantula from escaping. If you prefer to build an enclosure instead of buying one, make sure you drill enough ventilation holes at the top or sides of the enclosure.
Enclosure’s Decorations
Though they are primarily burrowers, blue fang tarantulas do not spend all their time below the substrate. So it’s always a good idea to have some beautiful decorations and plants in the enclosure. Cork barks and natural or artificial plants are the best types of decorations to place in their enclosures. A cork bark tube or a half-log hide is an excellent ornament for their enclosure since it acts as a hiding spot for blue fang tarantulas.
To prevent any potential harm to your blue fang tarantula, it’s important to avoid adding tall plants or structures to their enclosure. This will ensure that they are not at risk of falling and sustaining injuries while climbing.
Substrate
Blue fang tarantulas aren’t too picky about the type of substrate used in their enclosure. However, it’s important to choose a substrate that drains well and helps maintain proper humidity levels. In general, it is also best to avoid using substrates that are either too dry or too moist, because these types of substrates can cause some health-related problems for blue fang tarantulas. This type of substrate can easily be built with a mixture of peat moss and coconut coir or a commercial soil mix specifically formulated for use with tarantulas.
For spiderlings, it is recommended to provide about 2-3 inches (5-7 cm) of substrate, while adults require 4 or more inches (10 or more cm) of substrate to ensure they have enough room and depth to burrow effectively.
Water And Humidity
The natural habitat of the blue fang tarantula is frequently humid, so it’s best to recreate the same humidity levels in their enclosure. The recommended humidity level of a blue fang tarantula’s enclosure should be between 65% and 80%. This can be attained by getting the proper substrate and placing a large water bowl inside the enclosure. The evaporated water from the water bowl will always help keep the enclosure humid.
You can also spray the walls of the enclosure about two times every week in order to maintain the humidity levels in the enclosure. However, avoid spraying the tarantulas directly, as it may frighten them. Though spraying the enclosure is an optional activity, it can be an essential one if you don’t have any other means of providing some water for your spiderlings. Spraying the enclosure’s walls is important because spiderlings usually drink the water droplets on the walls of their enclosure since they can’t use large water bowls. However, you can also provide some water for your spiderlings by filling small bowl-like containers, like bottlecaps, and placing them in their enclosure.
Heating And Temperature
Always ensure you keep the temperature in your blue fang tarantula’s enclosure between 71°-82° F (22°-28° C) since that’s how they like it. It’s best to create a temperature gradient in their enclosure so that they can thermoregulate and are always free to choose which parts of the enclosure they want to reside in at all times. You can easily do this by placing a heat mat close to one part of the enclosure so that that part will be reasonably hotter than the other end.
It is crucial to also use a thermostat to control the enclosure’s temperature to prevent overheating.
Diet And Nutrition
Blue fang tarantulas are voracious eaters, so feeding them is relatively easy. It’s best to feed blue tarantula spiderlings tiny feeders such as fruit flies and then shift to larger feeders as they mature. Doing this ensures the spiderlings can subdue and satisfy their hunger since larger prey may be too challenging to eat. On the other hand, adult blue fang tarantulas can eat bigger prey like full-grown roaches, crickets, worms, and mice.
Blue fang tarantulas should be fed about twice a week since they tend to eat a lot. However, feel free to increase or reduce their food if you notice your tarantula specifically eats a lot or if their weight has increased or decreased. As such, blue fang tarantulas should be fed more frequently if they get visibly thinner and fed less if they get fat.
It’s important to remove all feeders from their enclosure at least 24 hours after dropping the food in. You should always do this irrespective of whether the prey is alive or dead. Leaving a live feeder in a blue fang tarantula’s enclosure can be disastrous because the feeder might attack the tarantula when they are unaware. On the other hand, leaving a dead feeder in the enclosure can invite parasites, bacteria, and other nasty stuff into the tarantula’s enclosure.
Social
Blue fang tarantulas prefer to live alone and only purposely meet other blue fang tarantulas when it’s time to mate. Attempting to place two blue fang tarantulas in one enclosure usually results in cannibalism. Due to this reason, it’s best to only keep one blue fang tarantula in an enclosure except when it’s time to breed them.
Behavior And Temperament
Blue fang tarantulas are highly defensive loners that prefer hiding away in their burrows rather than coming out in the open.
Handling
Blue fang tarantulas can use both urticating hairs and venom as a defense mechanism. Although their venom is not potent enough to kill humans, it can still cause significant discomfort and pain. It is not advised to handle them frequently since they are highly defensive when they sense a threat and are fast enough to quickly escape or bite a person within the twinkle of an eye.
Health And Lifespan
The average lifespan of blue fang tarantulas is 3 to 4 years for males and 12 to 15 years for females. They can only live for this long in captivity if they are adequately fed and cared for. It’s important to keep blue fang tarantulas in suitable habitats and feed them nutritious foods to ensure they can live as long as possible. Their enclosure and everything inside should also be kept clean and parasite free at all times. Doing all these and maintaining optimal temperature and humidity levels in their enclosure will make them live for a long time.
Price
The price of a blue fang tarantula depends on the sex and age of the tarantula. Spiderlings and juveniles are cheaper than adults, while males are cheaper than females.
Blue fang tarantulas are pretty affordable, and you can purchase one spiderling for around $50. Adults cost about $80 to $150 on average
