Tarantula
This fella needs ground cover and diggable depth first, so the best checkout pair is a deep Buddy with a starter hide.
Burrow Buddy fits this fella as a juvenile, but they will outgrow it at around 1.5" DLS. Plan for a larger adult terrestrial (it makes a great small communal); matures near 4–5" DLS. DM Big Z anytime if you want help speccing the next step.
Speed, attitude, color. Read the care guide before unboxing day.
Powder-blue baboon, and the spider that raises its kids together
Monocentropus balfouri, the Socotra Island Blue, comes from one of the strangest places on Earth, the alien-looking island of Socotra off Yemen. It is a soft powder-blue and tan baboon spider, smaller than most, and it has a trick no other tarantula reliably pulls off: it is genuinely communal.
Raised together as siblings, balfouris cohabit peacefully, share webwork, and, remarkably, the mother tends her slings in the burrow rather than treating them as snacks. A small colony of these in one enclosure is one of the coolest displays in the hobby. Defensive but usually retreats; dry, easy care. The care guide covers the communal setup and the no-handling line (Old World venom is no joke).
The numbers live in the care guide. Enclosure size, temps, humidity, feeding schedule, premolt signs, handling boundaries: it's all in the care guide for this exact fella. Start with the full Advanced guide, or click for the quick Open the Simple version →
Monocentropus balfouri - Spice 3 — Intermediate. Baby Buddy — spiderlings only (escape-proof ventilation; rehouse up before it's cramped); Burrow Buddy — grow-out for single juveniles; Larger custom enclosure for an adult — or a roomy custom communal build (lots of floor, many anchor points, equal-sized animals) for a group
Monocentropus balfouri
Big Z's Quick Verdict: A heavy-webbing Old World species famous for possible communal keeping — adults reach about 4–5 inches across.
| Temp | 75–82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low–Moderate (40-70%) |
| Setup | Semi-arid heavy-web terrestrial |
| Substrate | Dry soil mix with web anchor points |
| Feeding | Weekly; group feed carefully if communal |
| Handling | NEVER |
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%+
Current Big Z's catalog: Yes
Monocentropus balfouri
Keeper Snapshot: A heavy-webbing Old World species famous for possible communal keeping — adults reach about 4–5 inches across.
| Temperature | 75–82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low–Moderate (40-70%) |
| Setup Type | Semi-arid heavy-web terrestrial |
| Substrate | Dry soil mix with web anchor points |
| Feeding | Weekly; group feed carefully if communal |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 3 — Intermediate |
| Handling | NEVER |
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%+
Powder-blue baboon, and the spider that raises its kids together
Monocentropus balfouri, the Socotra Island Blue, comes from one of the strangest places on Earth, the alien-looking island of Socotra off Yemen. It is a soft powder-blue and tan baboon spider, smaller than most, and it has a trick no other tarantula reliably pulls off: it is genuinely communal.
Raised together as siblings, balfouris cohabit peacefully, share webwork, and, remarkably, the mother tends her slings in the burrow rather than treating them as snacks. A small colony of these in one enclosure is one of the coolest displays in the hobby. Defensive but usually retreats; dry, easy care. The care guide covers the communal setup and the no-handling line (Old World venom is no joke).
The numbers live in the care guide. Enclosure size, temps, humidity, feeding schedule, premolt signs, handling boundaries: it's all in the care guide for this exact fella. Start with the full Advanced guide, or click for the quick Open the Simple version →
Monocentropus balfouri - Spice 3 — Intermediate. Baby Buddy — spiderlings only (escape-proof ventilation; rehouse up before it's cramped); Burrow Buddy — grow-out for single juveniles; Larger custom enclosure for an adult — or a roomy custom communal build (lots of floor, many anchor points, equal-sized animals) for a group
Monocentropus balfouri
Big Z's Quick Verdict: A heavy-webbing Old World species famous for possible communal keeping — adults reach about 4–5 inches across.
| Temp | 75–82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low–Moderate (40-70%) |
| Setup | Semi-arid heavy-web terrestrial |
| Substrate | Dry soil mix with web anchor points |
| Feeding | Weekly; group feed carefully if communal |
| Handling | NEVER |
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%+
Current Big Z's catalog: Yes
Monocentropus balfouri
Keeper Snapshot: A heavy-webbing Old World species famous for possible communal keeping — adults reach about 4–5 inches across.
| Temperature | 75–82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low–Moderate (40-70%) |
| Setup Type | Semi-arid heavy-web terrestrial |
| Substrate | Dry soil mix with web anchor points |
| Feeding | Weekly; group feed carefully if communal |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 3 — Intermediate |
| Handling | NEVER |
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%+
Scorpion
Tarantula
Flash Sale −13%
Tarantula
Tarantula
Tarantula
Sold out - DM Big Z
Flash Sale −14%
Scorpion
Tarantula
Solifuge
