Sizing & care basics

New to tarantulas? Start here — it clears up the two things that confuse most first-time buyers: size and lifestyle.

Size notation. We use the European notation where L1 = 1st instar (1st molt, also "1FH"), L2 = 2nd instar, and so on. Sizes given as "BL/DC" refer to body length, not leg span. As a rough guide, a spider with 2 cm BL has roughly 5–7 cm leg span, depending on species.

Lifestyle — how your spider lives. This decides how you set up the enclosure:
- Arboreal — tree-dwelling; needs height and vertical surfaces to climb.
- Terrestrial — ground-dwelling; needs floor space and a hide.
- Fossorial — burrowing; needs a deep layer of substrate to dig into.

The basics every enclosure needs: appropriate substrate, a water dish, a hide, and ventilation. Match the setup to the lifestyle above and you've covered the essentials.

First tarantula? Our First Spider Kit is the safe way in — a beginner-friendly species together with everything it needs to start. N

CITES-listed species come with appropriate documentation.