Scientific Name: Pterinochilus murinus
Common Name: Orange baboon tarantula, OBT, Mombasa golden starburst tarantula, Usambara baboon, Orange bitey thing, Pterror
Type: Terrestrial / Semi-arboreal
Category: Old World
Endemic Location: Angola, Burundi, Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Body length: 2.25” (6cm)
Diagonal Leg Span (DLS): 6”(15cm)
Urticating Hairs: No
Growth Rate: Fast
Life Expectancy: Females 14 years / Males 4 years
Recommended Experience Level: Advanced
Pterinochilus murinus or more commonly known as the OBT, Orange Baboon Tarantula, Mombasa golden starburst or Orange Bitey Thing is an Old World Terrestrial Tarantula that has been known to show semi-arboreal tendencies. This T is famous for its bright orange color and notoriously grumpy attitude. The OBT comes from the central and southern areas of Africa and is known to be found in Angola, Burundi, Congo, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe just to name a few countries. Females of this species can live up to 15 years and grow to almost 6in in size. Males usually only live about 4 years and are smaller in size. This T is known to be very defensive and quick to show a threat posture and even slap the ground if it is disturbed. It is important to mention that most prefer to flee before actually biting and this species is extremely fast, especially when young. They are known to teleport, or move so fast your eyes can barely even keep up with their movement. This is not a species that you should try to attempt to handle as their venom is medically significant and can be extremely painful, though no real in depth scientific research has been done yet on the effects of their venom on the human body. Being an old world tarantula, this species does not have urticating hairs and relies mainly on its powerful venom for defense.
The husbandry for this species is very simple though you should always be alert when rehousing and have a catch cup handy. They are a hardy and easy to care for tarantula.