Spider skincare steps

Did you know? tarantulas shed their skin in a process called moulting. This is very energy-consuming for them and can take anywhere from 15 minutes to two days. A few weeks before a tarantula moults, it will stop eating and lose a lot of the hair on its abdomen or opisthosoma. Sometimes, tarantulas even burrow underground to moult their skin! If you see a tarantula lying upside down in its habitat, don’t worry. This is the normal position to moult their old skin. They shed their whole skin in one piece, so it can look like there are two tarantulas in the habitat!

Long legs, long life

The Andean stripe knee tarantula can live for up to 15 years, but females live a lot longer than males. The male tarantula will only live for around 18 months after his final moult. However, he also cannot mate until after the final moult has taken place. That doesn’t give him much time to be a dad!

Home sweet… burrow?

Where do tarantulas like to live? Most tarantula species tend to burrow in the ground or find a crevice to live in. These burrows are safe spaces that help tarantulas to regulate their body temperature. Near the opening of the burrow, the air is dry and warm, whereas deeper inside the burrow is more humid and cool. It’s also a great place to moult their exoskeletons – which typically happens once a year.

https://cdn.aucklandunlimited.com/zoo/assets/media/auckland-zoo-tarantula-spider-august-2022-10.jpg

Scary? Not really!

Although they are often portrayed as scary, tarantulas spend most of their lives trying to avoid being eaten by other animals! That’s why you don’t often see them out of their burrows - it’s better to stay tucked up underground if you’re always on someone’s dinner menu.

At the Zoo

Auckland Zoo has two tarantula which you can find near the entrance to our squirrel monkey habitat. The perfect habitat for a tarantula is somewhere that has plenty of dirt, leaves, and wood for them to burrow under. To keep the habitat’s humidity levels similar to a tropical rainforest, our ectotherm keepers regularly mist the plants inside.

Tarantulas get most of their hydration from their diets, but the mist creates an additional drinking source. Mist collected in upside down leaves gives the tarantulas a source of fresh water.

You might have to look closely to spot these guys. Just remember not to tap on the glass – it might feel gentle to a human but feels like an earthquake for a spider!

https://cdn.aucklandunlimited.com/zoo/assets/media/auckland-zoo-tarantula-spider-august-2022-16.jpg

In the Wild

Origin: South America

Habitat: Tropical rainforest

How you can help

As a not-for-profit, we rely on our amazing supporters like you to be able to continue our conservation Wild Work for the world’s most vulnerable and at-risk animal species. Help our wildlife in need by making a donation.

Other South American Species