Origin And Natural Habitat
The Orange Baboon Tarantula can be found across a large portion of Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa, including Zaire, Kenya, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania. Many of the original specimens were discovered in the Tanzanian Usambara mountain range, hence the alternate name “Usambara.” The Orange Baboon Tarantula is widely distributed, and many color varieties of the spider have been found in a variety of places.
Scientific Classification
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum | Chelicerata |
| Class | Arachnida |
| Order | Araneae |
| Infraorder | Mygalomorphae |
| Family | Theraphosidae |
| Genus | Pterinochilus |
| Species | Pterinochilus Murinus |
Species Overview
| Common Name | Orange Baboon Tarantula |
| Other Names | Mombasa Golden Starburst Tarantula OBT Tarantula The Orange Bitey Thing Pterror |
| Origin | Africa |
| Category | Old World |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial / Semi-Arboreal |
| Temperament | Aggressive |
| Minimum Tank Size | 3 X The Size Of The Tarantula (In Each Direction) |
| Temperature | 68 – 75°F (18 – 23°C) |
| Humidity | 40% |
| Diet | Carnivorous |
| Leg Span | Females: 4 to 6 inches (10-15 cm) Males: 3 to 4 inches (7.5-10 cm) |
| Urticating Hairs | No |
| Venomous | Yes |
| Growth Rate | Fast |
| Lifespan | Females: 14 years Males: 4 years |
| Experience Required | Experienced |
Appearance And Size
Females Orange Baboon Tarantulas are pretty large and often grow larger than their male counterparts. Nevertheless, the Orange Baboon Tarantula usually has an average leg span of 4-6 inches when they are fully grown.
The tarantula’s abdomen is patterned like a fishbone, and its legs have notably longer hairs than its body, which is coated in shorter hairs. It’s challenging to confuse the orange baboon tarantula with another tarantula species because of their color and because you can often see their fangs when they scream.
The Orange Baboon Tarantula also comes in 5 regionally distinct color varieties. These color variations are believed to be adaptations due to the regional soil types in the specific habitats the spiders can be found in the wild. The Orange Baboon Tarantula could be brown, dark, orange, red, or the typical color form.
Housing
Your Orange Baboon Tarantula should have an enclosure that is about three times its leg span, so you have to upgrade its enclosure the more it grows. As such, an enclosure that is 12 inches by 12 inches by 12 inches may accommodate an average adult Orange Baboon Tarantula with a leg spread of about 4-5 inches. Still, you might need to get a larger enclosure since some tarantulas of the specie grow a lot larger than that.
It may be tempting to try to go above and beyond and get an enormous enclosure for the orange baboon tarantulas, but please resist the urge as it will not only be difficult for them to get food as most are sedentary, but it will also be a waste of money as they are not the most exciting pets and will spend most of their time lying in the dirt. Additionally, avoid using a lid with a front opening. These spiders are pretty fast and can escape or bite you if you stick your hands in.
You can keep a spiderling Orange Baboon Tarantula in a small plastic cup-sized container with a tight-fitting lid. Just ensure whatever enclosure you use for them has enough ventilation holes. You must ensure the holes aren’t too big for the spider to squeeze through; you don’t want them running out.
Enclosure’s Decorations
The Orange Baboon Tarantula produces a lot of web in their enclosure, so there might be no reason to put the extra effort into decorating its enclosure since most of the accessories you place in the enclosure might often get hidden. There are some items they need to have in their enclosure, though, like a water dish. You should also provide these spiders with some cage accessories to anchor their webs. A cork bark should be the number one accessory you get for this specie of tarantula since it can both act as an anchor for their webs and a hiding place for them when they need it.
Include one or more hides that are the right size for your spider. Avoid large rocks so as not to squash any tarantulas that may be trying to burrow beneath them. Instead, it is best to use lighter items like plastic plant pots or pieces of cork bark.
Substrate
Your Orange Baboon Tarantula’s enclosure should also be halfway filled with substrate. They like burrowing, too, so filling their enclosure halfway with the substrate will encourage them to do so more frequently and make them feel more at home. Don’t be alarmed if your specimen chooses to ignore burrowing entirely and instead make a home under the hide because this species’ lifestyles vary significantly in the wild. You can build a substrate if you don’t want to buy one by mixing up some topsoil and vermiculite combined with peat moss and coconut fiber.
Water And Humidity
The Orange Baboon Tarantula spider prefers lower humidity levels compared to most other pet tarantulas. However, they must always have access to fresh water. You can easily provide them with fresh water by placing a shallow dish in their enclosure, which you should fill once every couple of days so they don’t get dehyrated. Their penchant for creating webs might make it difficult to refill the water dish whenever you want to. To solve this problem, you can add a second water bowl inside the enclosure. Orange baboon tarantulas prefer 40% humidity in the tank. That’s why you should get a hygrometer as soon as possible.
Heating And Temperature
The Orange Baboon Tarantula is easy to own temperature-wise because it can be kept at room temperature. So basically, if the temperature of your room is good enough for you, then it’s good enough for them too. You don’t need to buy any heat source to sustain them, so they save you a bit of money. However, you might need to get a heat source for them, especially if it’s winter or if you like living in a chilly place yourself. You want to keep them in a room that’s between 68 – 75 F (18 – 23 C), so your regular house heater might just do if this temperature range is something you’re comfortable with.
You should go with a heat mat if you decide to get an artificial heat source for them, though. Heat mats are usually the best artificial heat sources for tarantula enclosures. Connect the heat map to a high-quality thermostat so you can always gauge the temperature of the heat mat. You don’t want to get it too hot now, do you? A thermometer isn’t harmful to own, too, if you have a bit of extra money to spend. They are very cheap to buy, so it’s not like they are going to break your bank.
The Orange Baboon Tarantula doesn’t need any additional lightning source, so there’s no need to buy a light bulb or UVB Lamp.
Diet And Nutrition
Orange Baboon Tarantula eats a lot, so consider that before you get one for yourself. A growing Orange Baboon Tarantula can be fed three crickets or flightless fruit flies per week. You need to increase their food and give them larger prey as they become bigger. If you are unable to find small enough prey for your tarantula, you can feed them larger prey that you’ve already killed instead. When feeding tarantulas, the usual prey you’re supposed to feed them are animals that they can subdue themselves. So you should only feed them prey that is the same size or smaller than them. You can compare the size of the prey to the size of your tarantula’s carapace to know. It’s also important to remove and dispose of any animal they don’t eat within 24 hours. Decaying food serves as a haven for microorganisms.
An Orange Baboon Tarantula spiderling can be fed 3–4 crickets every week. Every two weeks or more, a mature tarantula can be fed 4-5 huge crickets. To give your spiders a diversified diet, you can add other insects to their current diet. Then, you can offer roaches, locusts, mealworms, and super worms as prey. When fed generously, males can reach maturity in just over a year, and females take just around another six months.
Don’t overfeed the Orange Baboon Tarantula because they are known to be aggressive feeders. They typically only decline food when pre-molting.
It would be best if you waited a few days after a molt before giving them food to allow their shell to harden. Wait at least a week for adults because larger spiders need more time to solidify their shells.
Social
The Orange Baboon Tarantula does best when kept alone, so ensure you house each of yours in a separate enclosure.
Behavior And Temperament
Despite having relatively simple care requirements, this tarantula species is not suitable for beginners and should only be kept by those with previous tarantula-keeping experience. They are tremendously venomous and have no issue with biting people whenever they get a chance. They are also relatively quick on their feet and can attack you in the twinkle of an eye.
Handling
The Orange Baboon Tarantula is one notorious mean-biting tarantula with no issues biting you whenever it gets an opportunity. As such, there’s no reason to try handling them. They frequently strike without warning due to their lightning-fast reflexes, so these particular spiders should be left for people with experience owning tarantulas. It’s pertinent to note that each orange baboon tarantula has its personality, though. Some may be more docile than others, especially when left alone, though their disposition can change at any time. So it is advisable to avoid handling them. These spiders often leap on the glass to attack when someone walks by or stays too close to their glass enclosure. They are just that aggressive. Their bites are deadly and can cause severe localized pain and swelling on the spot they bite you. People that these tarantulas bite also experience painful muscle cramps.
The Orange Baboon Tarantula contains more deadly venom than most other tarantulas, even though very popular in the pet tarantula pet trade.
Health And Lifespan
Orange baboon tarantulas have exceptionally lengthy lifespans in captivity. Females have an average lifespan of 14 years, while the average lifespan of a male is about four years. Ensure to only feed your Orange Baboon Tarantula store-bought prey food to keep them healthy. The parasites that can infest your tarantula can often be found in insects captured from the wild.
Additionally, ensure their enclosure is free of bacterial or mold growth. Although mold and bacteria are toxic to tarantulas, they have the ideal environment to flourish in their warm, humid habitat. Unfinished food and molts must be promptly removed to stop mold and bacteria growth. Additionally, their cage must have adequate ventilation.
Price
Adult females are typically the most expensive, while spiderlings are usually the cheapest. Spiderlings sell for about $25 each. Adults can be sold for about $60, depending on your location. So expect to spend between this range when getting this spider.
