The B. smithi Lifespan Project

I'm not hungry!

2006-10-03T00:12:00.000-06:00

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Stopped eating!
Sounds like molt time... sigh... had me used to molts so much it seems like it's been ages!

Big Dude

2006-09-25T17:49:00.000-06:00

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Sorry about missing last week... personal issues...
Fluffy sends his regards!

B&W

2006-09-13T21:55:00.000-06:00

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Thanks for the comments... not much happening for now, hope you like the picture.
See ya next week :)

Fading...

2006-09-03T23:38:00.000-06:00

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Fluffy's colors are fading... it's been a month and a half since molt... I'm guessing one or two more weeks and he'll molt again...

We should have named him "Molt" or "Molter" (in X-Files tradition)...

Until next week!

Spider Showdown!

2006-08-28T20:48:00.000-06:00

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The ultimate spider showdown!

Haha... not a great picture, but a fun one! I was gonna feed and he felt like going out, so I just put Fluffy on my bed and introduced Spiderman to him... they got along quite well... :P

See ya next week!

Too Shy For Pictures

2006-08-22T21:16:00.000-06:00

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Because of issues logging in to Blogger I didn't post a picture last week, those issues were not resolved until today, so here it is, a fresh picture of Fluffy.

Too bad he wasn't in the mood for pictures today, but he can't escape fame.

See ya next week!

3.5 Inches of Fuzzy Goodness

2006-08-07T21:40:00.000-06:00

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Fluffy was measured and clocked in at over 3inches. The measurement was not done diagonally as it should have, but Fluffy was being lethargic and not cooperating (fame has him tired).

The measurement I got was about 3.2in so I figured diagonally it would go at about 3.5in. Visit the gallery for more measurement pics.

A chat room has been added to the webpage. I will be hosting the weekly chat for Tarantulas.us, come by and talk if you like, I'll post tomorrow the day and time it will be held.

Thanks for the comments and emails, have a good one!

Rehoused and Fed!

2006-07-31T23:32:00.000-06:00

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Fluffy was rehoused yesterday, he settled right in and just had his first cricket after the molt which he promptly attacked and ate.

To see his new enclosure click here.
To watch a video of his first meal post-molt click here.

Cheers!

Looking good!

2006-07-25T17:15:00.000-06:00

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Freshly molted vibrant colors! Fluffly's looking great... next week I'll measure him, he grew big time!
Later!

Molt Special Edition v2.0

2006-07-22T13:32:00.000-06:00

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It was bound to happen! Yesterday Fluffy molted... I caught him when he had just flipped over so I got some good pictures...

I was also able to sex him, Fluffy is apparently a male... I say apparently because I'm still not quite sure, the exuvium isn't that big and I don't have a magnifying glass but it's really no surprise, given his amazing growth rate.

I hope you like the picture, check the gallery for more pictures of his molting process and afterwards... also pictures of the exuvium coming later today. The gallery's link is on the right (Go to -> Our B. smithi's Gallery).

Later!

Related Link: Sexing Tarantulas

No Molt! ...yet

2006-07-18T21:19:00.000-06:00

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Hey everyone!
I didn't post a picture yesterday and I apologize, but there was a reason behind it: I could've sworn Fluffy was gonna molt... false alarm though.

It's been refusing food and being all lethargic, so it's gotta be around the corner, besides, according to molting schedule it should've been this past week... yesterday I saw fluffy moving its legs to the side of the enclosure, and I figured it was trying to push itself to turn over and molt... so I decided not to bother Fluffy, expecting it to molt and make a much more exciting post.

Anyways, I'll be paying attention and bring you guys pictures if it does indeed molt. Meanwhile this picture will do... Fluffy is thankful to all the visitors.

Take care and talk to you soon!

Fluffy

2006-07-10T21:26:00.000-06:00

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So, Fluffy is doing good. Another feeding picture. Its colors are starting to quickly fade out which I assume means a molt is coming soon. It's been molting regularly once a month, so if this continues it should molt any time now, it's last molt was on June 10.

That's all for now, thanks for the comments, keep them coming.
Later!

Handling

2006-07-02T13:26:00.000-06:00

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I got my camera back and so we're here. I decided to take the little one out for a stroll and took the chance to photograph him for this week's post.

Some people agree with handling, others do not. It is, in the end, a decision left to the owner who must do so with great responsibility and care. While I do not handle my tarantulas a lot, it is not something I am against. Besides, it's a B.smithi, famous for its docility and calm nature.

I've read* that if you handle them often they will get accostumed to it and be more agreeable to do so with time, whether this is true or not I don't know, but it's worth a shot :)

Poll is over. Our tarantula's final name has been decided: Fluffy. I can't say it's my personal favorite but it's not bad either, so Fluffy it is. The good thing is that it's asexual.

Thanks for tuning in, we'll be back next week.
Later!

*The Tarantula Keeper's Guide by Schultz and Schultz

Big Bummer!

2006-06-26T21:06:00.000-06:00

I have bad news for you all: I am sorry but something happened I did not expect.

My camera broke down and was sent back to be exchanged for a new one. This is the first problem with the project we've had and I did not expect this, otherwise I would've gotten a replacement from a friend or something.

I thought about posting an old picture, but it is not the intention to cheat anyone. Im sorry, and we'll be back with a picture next week.

Also, the poll will continue until next week since there really isn't any event to post.

Thanks.

Feeding Pic and Video!

2006-06-19T00:22:00.000-06:00

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Today I fed our little guy/girl and took the opportunity to shoot this week's picture.

It has grown a lot since it molted and is now showing great colors! It's been very active and hungry, this is the 3rd time I've fed it since it molted, all three in the last 7 days.

If you want to see a video of the little one catching the cricket, you can watch it here and you can download it here.

The following is a list of my favorite name suggestions that were made, I selected 5 from this list which made it to the poll.

Agent Smith
Truman (Show)
M-quela
Cricket
Grassy Ass
Rogue (from X-Men)
Cellmate #1
Cristalena
Maikol
Itsy
Bravo
Ethel
Taco
Blinky
Fluffy

I feel an "unsexed" name is better, so if it turns out male or female there won't be much of a problem. Imagine calling a female Bob... it might be strange. Thanks for ALL the suggestions that were made.

As always please direct your questions and comments to the email link on the right.

Thanks again... until next week!
Later!

PS Vote!

Post-Molt

2006-06-12T23:37:00.000-06:00

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Well, today I measured little smithi and it is a little over 2in in legspan.

I also changed the format of the picture, instead of saying "Day 388" or whatever, it says the number of years, months and days since it was born... I think that will give a better idea later when looking at pictures and seeing how old it is... let me know what you think, you can post a comment or through email.

Thanks for all the names suggested so far, some great ideas. Next week I'll put up a poll to see which name should stay. Keep 'em coming please.

That's it for now, feel free to use the picture as your Desktop background, I do, looks nice I think. Thanks for visiting and for the feedback.

Later!

Molt!

2006-06-10T04:31:00.000-06:00

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Our little one is growing!

So today our B.smithi molted... while I sat at the computer (stupid stupid stupid). I was gonna go to bed when I realized it had molted... something that hadn't happened 3 hours earlier when I got here.

Anyways, keep the names coming! Many suggestions have been made, some of them very original and funny. I'll let you guys know it's final name soon.

If you want to see more pictures of the little guy post molt, check out the gallery (link on the right... GO TO - Our B.smithi's Gallery!).

Comments, questions or suggestions, keep them coming.
Thanks! :)

The Beginning!

2006-06-05T22:14:00.000-06:00

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Hi and welcome to my project!

Being an avid tarantula keeper I decided to start this blog as a sort of documentary on the growth and life of a Brachypelma smithi.

B.smithis are known for being slow growers and that should make it even more interesting.

The idea is that I will take a picture of it every week for its entire lifespan... It is possible that the smithi outlives me since it isn't exposed to the dangers of urban life :P ... that is, if it's a female. If it turns out to be a male then we will likely see its last days here.

So, every week from today until death do us part, I shall post a picture here and a description of how its doing.

Special pictorial events will be highlighted and added to a special events section.

Another thing: this spiderling is in need of a name. All suggestions are welcome. When enough suggestions have been made I will make a poll of 5 or 10 names that I liked and you get to vote for which one we should keep.

If you have ANY questions, comments or suggestions feel free to leave them here by clicking on comments (below the post) or email me at smithiproject@gmail.com

I have many plans and ideas I would like to implement, these will be added through time. I would especially like to have my own domain and server space, but I cannot afford it right now... we'll see how things develop.

Any questions you have please check out the FAQ, there is a link to it on the right.

Come back frequently to see what's going on, I will be constantly improving this site.

Thanks for reading... and wish this little one good luck!

FAQ

2006-06-01T01:00:00.000-06:00

About our B. smithi:
Born: May 2005
Sex: Male
CB/WC: Captive Bred
Size: Currently at about 3in / 8cm (legspan)
Current housing: Medium Kritter Keeper (Click HERE for picture)

Why do this? Many reasons... for fun, for education, for research, for entertainment... best of all: why not? I think it can turn out to be educational at least and may help others as reference some time in the future.

Why a B.smithi? I acquired 5 B.smithi slings, all siblings. These were born in May 2005 so they have just turned one year old. I do not have adult B. smithis but they are one of the most beautiful tarantulas I've seen in my opinion. Another reason: it's the hobby classic! Everyone has seen one, be it a T hobbyist or not.

Why this particular sling? Funny you should ask. Being how all 5 of these spiderlings are siblings you would think they would be about the same size. At least I did. But no... while 3 of them are very similar in size, the other two aren't. One is really small, the other one is really big!. I thought the bigger one would make for better show and pictures since it is already starting to show color... so the big one it is.

How do you know the exact day? I don't. I know he/she was born on May 2005. Since I do not know the exact day, I supposed (because it's easier to count) that it was born on April 30, 2005... the counting starts there, so May 1st, 2005 was Day 1.

How often is a picture taken?: Every week. Plus special pictorial events out of date such as molts and rehousings.

Possible reasons the project will end:
The spider dies. It's possible that it dies soon as it is still very young. Or old in many years.
Another reason, I die. It's possible too.

Molt Records

2006-06-01T00:10:00.000-06:00

All recorded molts listed, from most recent (top) to oldest (bottom).

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Date: July 21, 2006.
Time: Aprox. 3PM
Lasted: Aprox. 1.5 hours
Comments: Caught him when he had just flipped, did not witness the whole thing as I had things to do, but there are pictures of the beginning, the middle and the end in the gallery.

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Date: June 10, 2006.
Time: Aprox. 3AM
Lasted: N/A
Comments: Did not witness it. Realized it had molted after it had just finished.

Chat Room!

2006-06-01T00:02:00.000-06:00

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