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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Poec54" data-source="post: 38899" data-attributes="member: 3524">Do more reading.  There's plenty of accounts of Poecs killing each other at 2nd instar (ornata and metallica), and other species as juveniles or suddenly after 3 or 4 years.  They ARE NOT communal.  They have some tolerance for each other, but they're in it for themselves, not the group.  In the wild, they can leave if things get too tense, but confined in captivity, that could end up in a fight to the death.  Back when P metallica prices were sky high, Kelly Swift had half a sac of slings kill the other half, wholesale slaughter.  Others have had metallica in group cages for years without incident.  No telling what will happen, but never assume there's a guarantee it'll be Peaceable Kingdom.The authoritative books on Poecs: Ornament Vogelspinnen, Die Gattung Poecilotheria, by Krehenwinkel, Maerklin, and Kroes, (2008, 191 pages, ISBN 3-936180-27-X) says this:- Kill each other as nymphs:    ornata and some metallica- Can be kept together up to 6 months old:    formosa, some metallica, regalis, and striata- Can be kept together up to 1 year old:     fasciata, regalis (with 10% losses), striata (with 10% losses), tigrina, vittata, and some rufilata- Can be kept together for one 1 year old:     subfusca, and some rufilata (with 10% losses)The authors are aware that there cases of people exceeding these times, but they're also aware of many disasters.  These guys are probably the world's experts on Poecilotheria.  I certainly wouldn't argue with them.</blockquote>

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