Environmental Caution:

When a damp environment has too little air circulation, this can lead to an anaerobic environment. Where the typical aerobic bacteria helps keep certain types of waste from building up, they are instead replaced by anaerobic bacteria whose waste is more likely to be toxic and harmful. This is often accompanied by a strong swampy smell.

To guard against anaerobic environments, it is important to monitor and control moisture in the environment as well as air quality. One way to maximize both is to have plentiful live plants as the byproduct of photosynthesis is oxygen and water. Springtails can help keep the substrate aerated and break down waste so that the beneficial bacteria can more easily turn it into plant food.

Defining Characteristics:

• This species has a variety of looks, depending on how recently it has molted
• Phormictopus sp. 'Green Femur' is an extremely fast-growing species
• Phormictopus sp. 'Green Femur' are easily mislabeled. There are two other undescribed species that have Phormictopus and 'sp. 'Green' ' in their name.

Name: Phormictopus sp. 'Green Femur' are commonly known as the Hispaniolan Green Femur Tarantula. 

Recommended Enclosure Size & Setup: Phormictopus sp. 'Green Femur' is a fossorial species, meaning this animal will spend a lot of time underground and may need additional substrate to burrow. Surface area of the enclosure should be no less than two times the spider's diagonal leg span in one direction and three times the diagonal leg span in the other. We recommend against allowing your fossorial spider more than two times their diagonal leg span as head space above their substrate as a fall from any higher could result in serious injury.

The enclosure should be tall enough to accommodate 2-3 inches of substrate for slings and 5+ inches for adults. ABG mix, coco cradle, or Dig-It are good substrate options, but our Pet Bug Team prefers ABG all the way!

Temperature (°F): This species thrives in the mid 70s to low 80s, so a temperature close to 80° is ideal. Temperatures regularly dipping below 65 or spiking above 85 degrees should be avoided. A reliable thermometer is strongly recommended.

Humidity: These spiders thrive in a humid environment, the recommended ambient humidity should stay between 60 and 75%. This can be achieved by making sure the substrate is always at least slightly moistened. Depending on your location, you may need tools such as a humidifier to achieve this environment.

The enclosure sides and décor should be spritzed at least lightly around twice a week to provide your animal droplets to drink from and keep humidity up, but do not spray your spider directly. A hygrometer is a great way to monitor the humidity for your animal and see any needed adjustments. 

Size: At the time of sale, this animal will be at least 1 inch. Females can grow to be up to 6 inches, and typically the males are a bit smaller.

We use diagonal leg span to measure our spiders.

Age: Before making this species available to our customers, we ensure that they are well-established. This means our spiders are generally molted to a minimum of third instar and will have hatched two to three months prior to being listed for sale.

For spiders that we have not produced in house, we like to get 2 to 3 solid feedings in as well as the aforementioned minimums. They go through a 2-week minimum quarantine process to ensure the health of the animal.

For this species, the average lifespan for males is 3-4 years, and 12-15 years for females when provided an adequate environment.

These individuals are between 8 and 12 months old.

Feeding: These spiders are currently eating two to three 1/4 inch crickets, once a week. There are a variety of appropriate prey items that you can offer, such as roaches, waxworms, black soldier fly larvae, hornworms, and silkworms. Consider feeding your prey items with our gutload formula to give your pet well-rounded nutrition.

We recommend that the prey items not be much longer than the tarantula's “head” is wide. Larvae are an exception—our larvae are harmless. Since they are very high in fat, they're not the best staple diet, however they make a great weight gain supplement.

Remove uneaten prey items after 24 hours, these may stress your animal out or endanger the spider during molting. Never attempt to feed a freshly molted tarantula less than a week after their molt to prevent injury to the spider. Depending on its age, the hardening process could take anywhere from 48 hours all the way up to a week.

Sexing: Due to age, Phormictopus sp. 'Green Femur' sold by Josh’s Frogs are sold as unsexed.

Check out our individually listed animals to see if we have what you’re looking for!

Color/Pattern: This species expresses a lot of variety in between molts. A juvenile specimen’s femur remains blue until the spider is approximately 3 inches, DLS (diagonal legspan). After its next molt, the blue color disappears and the femur becomes green. Even as adults, before they molt they can be a variety of colors, including maroon, but after molting they develop brilliant green femurs. Over time, the green can dull and turn brown, but molting again will restore the green color.

Social Behavior: Phormictopus sp. 'Green Femur' is not a sociable animal and should be housed as an individual. Attempts at cohabitation can result in cannibalism. 

As babies, this species hides a lot. As adults, they can often be seen out, exploring their habitat.

Natural Range: Phormictopus sp. 'Green Femur' can be found in the wild in the Dominican Republic.

History in the Hobby: This is an extremely rare species in the tarantula keeping hobby.