Chilean Rose Tarantula

Subfamily: Theraphosinae
Origin: Northern Chile
Popularname chilean rose tarantula, chilensk fågelspindel, rosahårad fågelspindel
Size ca 6cm bodylength, ca 15cm legspan

This is the most common tarantula in captivity today. They are often sold in pet shops, that usually dont have a wide variaety of other terrarium animals.
G. rosea come in at least two color forms, one that are more pinkish colored and the other one more overall brown. The more pink form was often sold as Grammostola cala which are a different species, and once in a while you see this even today. The area where rosea are found are at the borders of and around Atacama desert in the north of Chile. Its dry arid and hot but not the kind of desert that are found in for example the Saharas, its more a rocky, bushy scrub desert. Its believed that rosea are nomadic in behavour, that it moves around alot in the wild occupying hollows under rocks.

The behavour of this spider is strange sometimes, sometimes they burrow down deep and stayes there a while to later on abandon it and occupying the top of the cork bark instead for weeks or another spot in the cage. Some interpret this behaviour that the spider dont thrive in the cage, but appearenly the rosea lives like that in the wild.

They can for no obvious reason stop feeding for months then all of a sudden start eating again. Probably this have something to do with the hibernation during the cold winter months in Chile and begin to feed again at spring time. So differencies in temperature that we cant detect might trigger this behavour wheather they are in a cage in Sweden or in the wild in Chile. So, this are most probably normal for this species.

Food.

They feed on insects and usualy anything smaller than themselves.