Ornithoctonus sp. "Purple Zebra"
Sold under its hobby name. This guide covers the group or trade name this fella is sold as, so the ranges fit the whole group. Start in the middle and watch how your animal settles in.
Purple Zebra Tarantula: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: A very hostile Asian earth tiger known only by the Purple Zebra trade name, with venom concerns. Build deep, firm substrate under anchored cork with a water dish and secure vents, and keep your hands out.
Group: TarantulasDifficulty: Spice 5: ExtremeSetup: Burrower, deep firm soil under anchored corkHandling: No handling, catch cup and tools only
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Snapshot
| Temperature | Stable room temp, away from sun and heat |
|---|---|
| Humidity | 65-80%: lightly damp lower soil, drier top |
| Setup Type | Burrower, deep firm soil under anchored cork |
| Substrate | Firm soil/coir, half to 3/4 full, lightly damp below |
| Feeding | Crickets/roaches no longer than abdomen, fed to condition |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 5: Extreme |
| Handling | No handling, catch cup and tools only |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Enclosure Format / Size Class
- Small spiderlings: secure sling enclosure or Baby Buddy with escape-tight vents, a full retreat, molt space and water
- Larger spiders: Burrow Buddy while it fits the burrow, turning and molt space, then a deeper custom build
- Any size: build to the spider in front of you. Size alone won't tell you sex or maturity.
Warnings First
- Venom concerns and very hostile behavior. Keep hands away from it: have a catch cup ready before opening, and use tools.
- Secure the lid and check every vent gap before the spider goes in.
- One spider per enclosure. They fight and cannibalize.
- Never leave live feeders with a molting or newly molted spider.
- Anchor furnishings so digging can't collapse them, and keep hard objects out of the fall zone.
- Don't dig out or flood a sealed burrow just to check on it.
Simple Care
- House one spider per enclosure.
- Have a catch cup ready before you open the lid, and use tools for maintenance.
- Give it a firm starter retreat under anchored cork and let it remodel.
- Keep the lower soil lightly damp and the surface drier, without sealing the enclosure.
- Check the water dish and substrate often. Add water slowly down an edge, away from the retreat.
- Offer manageable prey and clear leftovers by the next day.
- Leave sealed burrows and molting spiders alone.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Pick the enclosure by leg span, burrow space, and room to turn and molt. A deep fill alone doesn't make a small container big enough.
- Sling enclosures can be about two-thirds full, bigger burrow builds half to three-quarters. Leave usable room above the substrate.
- Pack the substrate so it holds a tunnel: it should clump when squeezed without dripping. Loose dry coir won't hold a burrow.
- Anchor cork and light web supports securely. Put the water dish where you can refill it without wrecking the retreat.
- Water slowly down an edge and keep the vents open. Misting the surface can leave deeper soil dry, so check a visible edge instead of watering on a calendar.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Drop prey near the retreat and close up fast. Don't hold food against the fangs with tongs.
- Prey no longer than the abdomen. Tiny slings can take small pre-killed pieces. Young spiders need smaller meals and closer watching.
- Feed to the abdomen and feeding response, not a calendar. Cut back or pause when it's well fed. If it refuses, pull the feeder and keep water in.
- After a molt, wait until the new fangs and body harden before feeding. There's no fixed day count for every size.
- Remove prey remains and boluses without tearing up established tunnels.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: Unknown. Don't infer a habitat or locality from the Purple Zebra name or its Thai common name.
- Habitat translation: A general burrowing build: a stable, sheltered retreat in deep firm soil with water and airflow. Don't assume every earth tiger lives the same way.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Temperament: very hostile, with venom concerns. That's why it sits at Spice 5.
- Adult size, lifespan and breeding needs aren't known for this trade name. Log burrowing, feeding and molts, and adjust to each spider.
- Purple Zebra is a genus-level trade name in Ornithoctonus, not a described species. Don't read a habitat or locality into the name.
- See a vet experienced with invertebrates for persistent loss of condition, injury or trouble molting.