Care & Husbandry
How we raise them, and what you need to know before yours arrives.
Every regius is documented with hatch date, lay date, mother, and father (when available). First molt date is logged at I3, when spiders are separated to prevent predation between clutch-mates. This record travels with the spider and is accessible through its lineage page once you claim ownership.
We make them available at instar 6 (I6). Earlier instars carry a higher risk of mismolt — we hold them until they have demonstrated stable molting before listing.
Regals are arboreal and need vertical space to feel secure. Enclosures are oriented tall rather than wide, with cork bark, branching structures, or artificial perches positioned high for anchor webbing and retreat sites. Substrate is coco fiber or a peat-perlite blend, kept slightly moist at the base while the upper portion dries out. Cross-ventilation is essential — stagnant air leads to respiratory stress.
Temperature and humidity are monitored continuously. Temperatures are kept between 69–84°F to simulate native environments. Humidity is maintained between 50–80%, adjusted based on whether a juvenile is approaching a molt — higher humidity supports a clean molt, while lower humidity encourages activity and feeding between molts.
Feeding on demand rather than a fixed schedule prevents overfeeding and more closely mirrors natural behavior. Prey is always sized to the current instar — nothing larger than the spider's body length. Feeders include melanogaster and hydei fruit flies, mealworms, and blue bottle flies.
Spiders are never hand fed — preserving natural hunting behavior from the start.
Focused handling begins at I5 on a weekly basis. Before that, the priority is building trust rather than forcing interaction — consistent, low-stress contact during feeding and cleaning sets the foundation. If a spider initiates contact before I5, that contact is welcomed during care times.
Acclimating spiders to vibration and sound during early instars lowers the risk of mismolt and sets the foundation for a calm adult temperament. Temperament notes can be added to your spider's record once you claim ownership.
Before molting, your spider will seal itself inside a silk retreat. Do not disturb it. Remove all live prey from the enclosure before a molt begins — live feeders can injure a freshly molted spider whose exoskeleton has not yet hardened.
After the spider emerges, wait 48–72 hours before resuming feeding to allow the new exoskeleton to fully harden. Resume feeding once the spider is active and showing normal hunting behavior. Log the molt date in your spider's record — over time, the pattern tells you a great deal about its health and growth.
When your spider arrives, place it in its enclosure and leave it undisturbed for at least 24–48 hours. Transit is stressful — the priority is decompression, not interaction. Provide clean water by misting one enclosure wall lightly. Do not offer food for the first 48 hours. Some spiders will be active immediately; others may hide for several days. Both are normal.
Spiders are never paired within the same lineage. When a female is ready to clutch, we pair her with a male from a separate bloodline — genetic diversity is maintained across every generation, not just within our own collection. This is a deliberate choice, not a workaround.
Dam and sire information is documented for every spider and visible in full through the lineage archive. When you claim a regius, you inherit that record going back to the founding generation.