Poecilotheria miranda (Bengal Spotted Ornamental Tarantula)

Poecilotheria miranda (Bengal Spotted Ornamental Tarantula)

The Bengal Spotted Ornamental Tarantula, or Poecilotheria miranda, is a large arboreal tarantula from India. Adults have a dark base with purple hues across the femurs and carapace (head), and legs that run mostly white with wide black banding, fewer and thicker bands than most of the rest of Poecilotheria, which gives the pattern unusually high contrast. That purple is not just a juvenile trait either, it can carry into adulthood too, usually showing most on the darker sections of the animal right after a fresh molt. The same white and black coloration shows on the underside of the legs and is flashed to ward off predators, just like the rest of Poecilotheria. It grows at a medium to fast pace and that high contrast pattern only sharpens with every molt. P. miranda reaches a max diagonal leg span of about 7 to 8 inches, and females live 12 to 15 years while males live 2 to 3. This is a fast and defensive species that would far rather bolt into its tube than stand its ground, which suits keepers who want one of the harder to source Poecilotheria in the hobby. Grab one of the most visually distinct old world arboreal tarantulas for sale today, offered here in many sizes.

Why do hobbyists keep the Bengal Spotted Ornamental Tarantula?

• Stunning Coloration: A dark base with purple hues across the femurs and carapace, and legs that run white with wide black banding, fewer and thicker bands than most of Poecilotheria. That purple can show at any age, not just as a juvenile, and it is the part photographs never quite get. That purple is part of the same iconic pokie coloration Poecilotheria is known for, and there is nothing else like it.
• Large Arboreal Species: Poecilotheria is known for having some of the largest arboreal tarantulas in the hobby, and miranda does not disappoint. Adults reach seven to eight inches, impressive for a species that spends its whole life off the ground.
• Confident and Visible: Miranda is an active night hunter, but given enough space it will not just sit hidden in its tube. It is confident enough to be out during the day too, and noticeably less skittish and flighty than a lot of other Asian arboreals.
• Easy To Raise: Pokies start larger and eat better than a lot of the more timid arboreal species, giving real survivability, and miranda backs that up, hatching larger than most and feeding with real enthusiasm, even observed taking down small lizards and other vertebrate prey in the wild. Pokies also come from a region with a wet season and a dry season, so they tolerate real-world humidity swings better than their reputation suggests, and combined with how much less defensive and flighty Poecilotheria is next to other Asian arboreals, that makes miranda a good choice for a first Asian arboreal rather than one to save for later.
• Genuinely Rare in the Hobby: This is a rare species in the hobby, and it stays highly sought after because of it. Poecilotheria already runs smaller egg sacs and longer gestation periods than a lot of other tarantulas, and this species sits toward the harder end even within that, so very few captive-bred miranda reach the market in a given year.

Which size should I choose?

• 1-1.25 Spiderling: about the size the species hatches at, your cheapest way to collect this species and watch it grow up from the very start.
• 1.5-2" Juvenile: past the delicate early stage with color already coming in, and still years of growth ahead.

Looking for similar species?

• Browse our Old World Tarantulas and Arboreal Tarantulas collections to explore related care profiles and species groupings.

Pick the size you want above. Each size still has its own care guidance and its own price behind it, so what you see for that size is exactly what ships.