Pelinobius muticus
King Baboon - complete care guide
King Baboon
Temperature
24-28 °C
Target ambient range
Humidity
65-75 %
Substrate / enclosure RH
Adult DLS
19-23 cm
Average - varies per individual
Moult interval
Sling 3-6w - Juv 2-3mo
Adult 15-20mo
Adult cycle = mature females; males never moult again after maturity
About
Massive rust-brown African obligate burrower with huge rear legs for digging. Slow-growing; provide deep dry substrate.
Husbandry cheat sheet
- Origin
- Tanzania, Kenya
- Habitat
- Dry scrub & savanna
- Temperament
- Potent venom
- In your collection
- 0
Growth, lifespan & conservation
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Maturity
- ♀ 48mo ♂ 36mo
- Lifespan
- ♀ 18yr ♂ 4yr
- Continent
- Africa
- UK availability
- Commonly available
Care Guide
Pelinobius muticus
King Baboon - a complete husbandry sheet. Use as a starting point and adjust to your individual specimen.
What size enclosure does a King Baboon Tarantula need?
Adults
45 × 30 cm with 25+ cm of packed substrate - King Baboons are among the deepest diggers in the hobby and move serious volumes of earth.
Slings & Juveniles
Sling vials with 5-8 cm of firmly packed substrate and a starter burrow entrance against the wall. Too much open space stresses burrowers.
To map exact floor space and substrate safety limits for your setup, use our free interactive tarantula enclosure planner.
What temperature and humidity does a King Baboon Tarantula need?
Heating
The King Baboon is comfortable at 24-28 °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. For burrowers this matters double: under-tank heating cooks the moist lower substrate column and warps the burrow gradient dangerously.
Humidity
Hold 65-75 % via the substrate moisture itself, not surface misting - deep packed substrate is the humidity buffer. Keep the top inch drier.
Ventilation
Moderate cross-ventilation. Avoid top-vent-only designs that wick moisture out of the substrate column too fast.
What substrate is best for a King Baboon Tarantula?
Recommended Mixes
Depth
25-35 cm
Notes
Pack it like packed earth - Pelinobius excavate tunnels the width of their 20 cm bodies, and a collapse is fatal. Damp enough to hold, never wet.
How do you set up a King Baboon Tarantula enclosure?
Décor
The Hide
The burrow itself. Start an entrance under cork against the side glass so the spider excavates where you can see it.
Water
Shallow dish on the surface, always full. Many fossorials plug their burrows for weeks - they drink when they surface, so the dish must be ready.
Lighting
Ambient room light only - fossorials spend most of their lives underground and bright light offers nothing.
How often should you feed a King Baboon Tarantula?
Good Feeders
Long refusal worrying you? Separate premoult fasting from genuine problems with our "Is my T okay?" checker.
Is my King Baboon Tarantula dying or moulting?
Pre-moult signs to look for
Refusing food for weeks is normal before a moult - a healthy King Baboon Tarantula fasting is almost never an emergency in itself. Watch for slowing down and spending more time in the hide, sealing the burrow entrance with silk (a sealed door usually means "do not disturb - moulting in progress"), laying a thick moult mat of web on the floor. Old World species do not flick urticating hairs, so there is no bald patch to watch - rely on fasting, lethargy and hide time instead.
On its back is MOULTING, not dying
A King Baboon 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 273-387 days for sub-adults, with adult females moulting around every 15.2 months (up to 19.7 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 12 days in this species. Offer no food and no handling for about 12 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.
What ongoing care does a King Baboon Tarantula need?
🪞 Moulting
Fossorials moult underground and often seal the burrow for days or weeks beforehand. A sealed spider is usually a fine spider - never dig one out. Remove prey from the entrance and wait. Adult intervals apply to mature females - males never moult after their ultimate moult.
🧹 Cleaning
Spot clean the surface only. Never excavate to clean - destroying a burrow network is a serious setback and stress event.
✋ Handling
Absolutely not. One of the largest and most defensive African baboons, with one of the most potent documented tarantula venoms. Large fangs, zero hesitation.
What are the most common mistakes when keeping King Baboon Tarantulas?
✓ What They Love
- Deep, firmly packed, slightly damp substrate
- Starter burrow against the side glass
- Stable temperatures
- Patience - sealed burrows are normal, sometimes for weeks
✕ Common Mistakes
- Shallow substrate
- Digging them up to "check on them"
- Heat mat underneath
- Loose, dry substrate that collapses
Keep exploring: related care guides
More deep-burrowing species and close relatives from our full library:
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