Keeping jumping spiders – quickly and easily explained!

Keeping Jumping Spiders

In this article we will go into detail about keeping jumping spiders. All important points are explained briefly and understandably and will support you in caring for your jumping spider.
The most widespread species of jumping spider in the terrarium hobby is called Phidippus regius. These are found in the south-east of the USA, such as Florida, but also on various Caribbean islands such as Cuba or the Bahamas. One automatically associates summer and warmth with these regions. This is exactly what you should keep in mind when it comes to the right keeping parameters for Phidippus regius. The 1.5-2 cm large Phidippus regius are convincing not only because of their cute eyes but also because of the different local forms that are represented in the hobby. By local forms we mean populations of Phidippus regius from different regions, which are often also differently coloured. Phidippus regius “Everglades”, for example, are usually bright orange, whereas Phidippus regius “Bahamas” are more grey, white or dark brown.
But now to the correct keeping:

Can I keep several jumping spiders in one terrarium?

When keeping jumping spiders, it is important to remember that Phidippus regius are not social spiders. They do not miss conspecifics, but also perceive them as food. For this reason they should be kept alone in the terrarium. So if you want to keep several jumping spiders, you need a separate container for each animal.

What does the abbreviation FH mean?

Jumping spiders go through different stages of development.
Starting with the egg, they pass through various larval stages in the cocoon. The larvae can only eat limited amounts of food, do not yet produce spider silk and they are not yet fully developed motorically. In the first phase after hatching from the egg, the small jumping spiders feed exclusively on a yolk sac located on the abdomen. The first feeding skin (FH1) is the first stage of the juvenile spiders after the larval stages, in which the jumping spiders hunt and prey on food animals independently. After each further moult, the number after the abbreviation FH increases by one.

Do I need lighting for keeping jumping spiders?

Jumping spiders are diurnal and hunt their prey by sight. For this reason, bright lighting in the terrarium is very important for keeping jumping spiders. Without sufficient light, the small spiders are more inactive or may not find their food. The lighting time should be about twelve hours per day. This can be automated using a timer. The temperature may drop to room temperature during the night. When choosing lamps, make sure that you use daylight lamps.

Average temperature in the Bahamas:

Climate table Bahamas
-15%
4,49  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-11%
20,99 32,99  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-31%
-11%
26,49 44,49  Incl. VAT plus shipping

What do I have to keep in mind about the temperature?

As already mentioned, Phidippus regius come from very warm regions of the world. For this reason, the temperature in the terrarium should be at least 26°C for proper keeping of jumping spiders. 28-30°C are even better. If the temperature is too low, the jumping spiders will only reach a very small size or will stop eating. A heat lamp is a remedy to reach these temperatures. It is best to test the temperature in the terrarium with a thermometer before placing the animal inside. The upper part of the terrarium should reach a temperature of 28-30 °C. The lower part of the terrarium can be heated to a temperature of 10 °C. The lower part of the terrarium can be 1-2 °C lower. This creates different heat zones in the terrarium and the jumping spider can choose the optimal temperature itself.

Which terrarium is suitable for keeping jumping spiders?

Terrariums with a greater height than length and width are particularly suitable as accommodation. Terrariums or containers with 10 × 17 × 21 cm to 20 × 20 × 30 cm are ideal. However, you can also keep the animals in tins of similar dimensions. Make sure there is good air circulation, e.g. in the form of a terrarium with double ventilation.
Jumping spiders usually like to stay in the upper part of the terrarium and spin their web there.

Springspinnen Haltung- Spinnennetz
Springspinnen Haltung- Pflanzen
For this reason, the substrate of the terrarium is relatively secondary. However, if you want to integrate plants or a ground police in the terrarium, forest humus, white rotten wood and leaves are the optimal substrate. The terrarium should be equipped with many climbing possibilities, reaching in all possible directions of the terrarium. This provides the jumping spider with enough running space, movement and hiding places. In addition, real plants not only beautify any terrarium, but also provide additional hiding places for the animals.
 
It is important to know that the animals should only move into their final terrarium when they are about 1 cm long. Before that, they might not be able to find their food due to the large space. Below is a list of which containers are suitable for the spiders, depending on their size:
 
FH1-3: 
 
0,30 17,50  Incl. VAT plus shipping
FH4-6:
1,30 12,00  Incl. VAT plus shipping
1,30 15,00  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-12%
14,99  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-17%
24,99  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-33%
4,49 89,90  Incl. VAT plus shipping

FH6 and larger:

-9%
130,00 141,94  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-18%
50,49 132,99  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-34%
79,99 159,00  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-17%
24,99  Incl. VAT plus shipping
-12%
2,80 55,00  Incl. VAT plus shipping

Food and water

Like all living creatures, jumping spiders need food and water to survive. Two to three times a week, the animals should be provided with both to ensure that they are well and thriving. The best way to give the jumping spiders liquid is to spray water on one side of the terrarium with a spray bottle two to three times a week. There should be enough droplets adhering to the glass to last 2-4 hours, so that the spider has enough time to drink from it. You can also choose the side where the spider’s web is, as they also like to drink from the spider silk.
 
Just like the water, the jumping spiders should also be given food two to three times a week. In principle, Phidippus regius can catch food that is 1-1.5 times their size. In addition, when keeping jumping spiders, care should be taken to provide a wide variety of food animals, as these contain different nutrients that are important for the spider. If the jumping spider does not accept a food animal, you can simply try a smaller food animal at the next feeding. Feeders such as crickets or grasshoppers should be removed from the terrarium if they are not eaten. This protects the jumping spider during moulting, as it can be eaten by these food animals during this period. The following is a list of which food animals are possible for which size of jumping spider:
 
FH1-2:

FH3-4:

4,50 8,50  Incl. VAT plus shipping

FH5-7:

-25%
1,49  Incl. VAT plus shipping
4,50 8,50  Incl. VAT plus shipping

ab FH7:

-25%
1,49  Incl. VAT plus shipping

You can find out more about food in our article Jumping spider food – the right diet!

Keeping jumping spiders is therefore not particularly complicated and even beginners can get to grips with the subject. If you observe and implement the listed points, you will have a lot of fun with the cute little jumping spiders.

You can find our offspring for sale here:

If there are any further questions, feel free to ask them below the article in the comments.

2 thoughts on “Keeping jumping spiders – quickly and easily explained!

  1. jelle.jambers25 says:

    Do jumping spiders need a friend or can you keep one with no problem of being it sad.
    I would like to keep one but i need to learn everything first i don’t want to give it a bad home.

    • Frank says:

      Hello!

      Most spiders do not differentiate whether a food animal, attacker or conspecific is sitting in front of them. They attack and eat/kill the opposite. The exception to this behaviour is mating. In this case, the male performs knocking signals or mating dances to signal to the female that he is a conspecific and wants to mate.
      This is also the case with jumping spiders. Only when mating do you put a female and a male together and keep them separate again immediately after the act.
      I hope this helps you.

      Kind regards
      Frank

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