For an earlier post about my little beauty, click here. 

The warm summer months has rendered my tarantula room “Molt Central”, and I’ve been delighted to discover that even some of my slowest-growing Ts are getting in on the action.

My female A. schmidti before a recent molt.

With my Lasiadora itabunae and my female Lasiadora parahybana both in heavy pre-molt and ready to go any day, I checked my tarantula room last night expecting to see one of them on their backs. However, neither of those two were belly-up; instead, my female Aphonopelma schmidti was in the process of turning over.

My A. schmidti on her back and ready to molt.

Since her last molt, my once skittish and picky eater had turned into a cricket chomping machine, and it didn’t take her long to put on some post-molt size. Still, as it had taken her several months to molt last time, and she had just eaten last week, I wasn’t expecting a new molt so soon. Had I been paying better attention, I might have remarked on her darkening coloration and her increasingly lethargic and sedentary behavior, two classic signs of pre-molt.

My A. schmidti female just after a molt.

Not only has my little girl picked up a bit more size (I’ll have to get a good measurement once she hardens a bit) but she is also sporting more of her adult coloration. Her legs and carapace have picked up much more of those striking blonde tones that first drew me to this species.

Once she has rested up and hardened a bit, I will get a better photo and a measurement. I can’t wait to see her up and about again.