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Cyriocosmus perezmilesi

Bolivian Dwarf Beauty - complete care guide

Bolivian Dwarf Beauty

Intermediate care Requires consistent husbandry - more sensitive to ventilation, humidity, or feeding schedule. Some experience recommended. 🌍 Terrestrial Lives on or near the ground. Needs floor space more than height. Falls from height can be fatal - keep dΓ©cor low. 🌎 New World πŸ’¨ Skittish Easily startled - may bolt or dart suddenly when disturbed. Secure lids are essential as they can be escape artists. ⚠️ Flicks hairs Uses urticating (barbed) hairs on the abdomen as a primary defence. These hairs can cause skin irritation and must be kept away from eyes. New World species only. Family: Theraphosidae
Cyriocosmus perezmilesi
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Temperature

22-28 Β°C

Target ambient range

Humidity

60-75 %

Substrate / enclosure RH

Adult DLS

4-5 cm

Average - varies per individual

Moult interval

Sling 3-6w - Juv 2-3mo

Adult 12-16mo

Adult cycle = mature females; males never moult again after maturity

About

Bolivian dwarf tiger - small terrestrial, standard dwarf care: small enclosure, water cap, small prey weekly.

Husbandry cheat sheet

Origin
Americas
Habitat
Savannah/Forest Floor
Temperament
Skittish
In your collection
0

Growth, lifespan & conservation

Growth rate
Medium
Maturity
♀ 22mo β™‚ 16mo
Lifespan
♀ 12yr β™‚ 3yr
Continent
Americas
UK availability
Commonly available

πŸ“Έ Community Gallery Photos from keepers with public specimens

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Care Guide

Cyriocosmus perezmilesi

Bolivian Dwarf Beauty - a complete husbandry sheet. Use as a starting point and adjust to your individual specimen.

Field Notes
01

What size enclosure does a Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula need?

Adults

True dwarves - a mature adult is happy in 15-20 cm cube. Small enclosures mean you actually see them.

Slings & Juveniles

House spiderlings in small, appropriately sized deli cups or sling enclosures - oversized enclosures make prey capture difficult. Upgrade roughly every 2-3 moults.

To map exact floor space and substrate safety limits for your setup, use our free interactive tarantula enclosure planner.

02

What temperature and humidity does a Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula need?

Heating

Venezuelan Dwarf This tarantula is comfortable at 22-28 Β°C. Most UK homes sit in or near this range for most of the year; heat the room rather than the enclosure if winter drops below it.

Humidity

Don't chase a hygrometer number - target roughly 60-75 % by keeping the substrate mostly dry, a full water dish, and one slightly damp corner if the species sits at the upper end. Overflow the dish for a moult.

Ventilation

Cross-ventilation is essential - side-vented enclosures, never stagnant. Poor airflow plus humidity kills faster than dryness ever will.

03

What substrate is best for a Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula?

Recommended Mixes

βœ“ Coco fibre βœ“ Organic topsoil (fertilizer-free) βœ“ Coco fibre / topsoil mix

Depth

5-8 cm

Notes

Keep the LOWER substrate layers damp (moist, never soggy) to hold burrow structure and humidity - these are humid-forest dwarfs, and dry substrate desiccates them. Let the top layer stay relatively dry.

04

How do you set up a Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula enclosure?

DΓ©cor

🌿 Cork bark 🌿 Spider wood / driftwood 🌿 Fake plants 🌿 Cork tubes 🌿 Branches

The Hide

A cork bark half-log, leaning slab, or cork tube placed on the substrate.

Water

Always provide a shallow fresh water dish. Keep it full and clean it regularly. No sponges.

Lighting

No special lighting needed. Ambient room light is enough; avoid heat lamps and bright spotlights.

05

How often should you feed a Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula?

Slings Every 3-5 days (fruit flies, pre-killed crickets or tiny roach nymphs).
Juveniles Every 5-7 days (small crickets or roach nymphs).
Adults Every 5-7 days - dwarves have fast metabolisms relative to their tiny meals.

Good Feeders

πŸ¦— Crickets πŸͺ³ Dubia roaches πŸͺ³ Red runner roaches πŸ¦— Locusts

Long refusal worrying you? Separate premoult fasting from genuine problems with our "Is my T okay?" checker.

06

Is my Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula dying or moulting?

Pre-moult signs to look for

Refusing food for weeks is normal before a moult - a healthy Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula fasting is almost never an emergency in itself. Watch for slowing down and spending more time in the hide, laying a thick moult mat of web on the floor. New World species like this one often show a bald spot on the abdomen that darkens to near-black as the new skin underneath readies - a darkening bald patch is a reliable countdown, not a disease.

On its back is MOULTING, not dying

A Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula lying upside down or on its side with legs curled inwards is almost certainly mid-moult. Do not touch it, do not right it, do not mist it - just remove any live prey (crickets can kill a defenceless moulter) and leave the room.

How long between moults?

For this species, expect a moult roughly every 21-42 days for spiderlings, every 60-90 days for juveniles, and every 219-310 days for sub-adults, with adult females moulting around every 12.2 months (up to 15.8 months at the extreme). Males never moult again after their ultimate (mature) moult.

After the moult: fang hardening time

The new exoskeleton stays soft, with fangs that cannot grip, for roughly 5 days in this species. Offer no food and no handling for about 7 days - feeding too early is how fresh moulters get injured. The shed exuvium is also the best sexing tool there is - see our tarantula sexing guide for what to look for.

Genuinely worried about behaviour that is not moulting? Our "Is my T okay?" triage tool walks the danger signs one by one.

07

What ongoing care does a Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantula need?

πŸͺž Moulting

Signs: refuses food, abdomen darkens and goes glossy, becomes sluggish, often heavy webbing or a moult mat. During the moult: do not disturb, remove any live prey, keep water available. Wait until the fangs are black and hard (several days for adults, 1-2 for slings) before feeding again. Adult intervals apply to mature FEMALES - a mature male never moults again (his ultimate moult is his last), and female cycles stretch or shrink with feeding and temperature.

🧹 Cleaning

Daily: check the water dish. Weekly: remove uneaten prey boluses and spot-clean. Full deep clean only every few months, and only when necessary.

βœ‹ Handling

Tiny and inoffensive, but fast and skittish - dwarf species teleport in bursts when startled. Their size and speed make handling impractical and risky; best enjoyed as an observation species.

08

What are the most common mistakes when keeping Bolivian Dwarf Beauty Tarantulas?

βœ“ What They Love

  • Fresh water dish at all times
  • Cross-ventilation
  • Stable room temperature
  • A proper hide and a few anchor points

βœ• Common Mistakes

  • Soaking-wet substrate
  • Daily misting
  • Heat mat underneath the enclosure
  • Tall enclosures with hard dΓ©cor (fall risk for terrestrials)

Keep exploring: related care guides

More ground-dwelling species and close relatives from our full library:

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