Baerg WJ. 1958. The Tarantula. University of Kansas Press / Lawrence (Kansas). 88 pages, 19 figures. [THE seminal work on tarantula biology. The publication of this book marks the beginning of the tarantula keeping hobby. This book is out of print and rare but original copies are still occasionally available from used book stores and on the Internet. Also, it has been reprinted by a publisher in England.]
Baxter RN. 1993. Keeping and Breeding Tarantulas. Chudleigh Publishing, Ilford, Essex, UK. ISBN 0-9519219-1-6. [Very good book on tarantula care.]
Breene RG. 1997. Common Names of Arachnids. American Tarantula Society, Artesia, New Mexico. [No ISBN. Comprehensive listing of all common names of arachnids officially recognized by the American Arachnid Society's Common Names Committee. Absolutely necessary for dealers, authors, and hobbyists alike.]
Breene RG, Dean DA, Cokendolpher JC and Reger BH. 1966. Tarantulas of Texas. Their Medical Importance, and World-wide Bibliography to the Theraphosidae (Araneae). American Tarantula Society, Artesia, New Mexico. [No ISBN. An extremely informative little book addressing the natural history of several Texas tarantulas with notes on many exotic species. Very good bibliography.]
Foelix RF. 1982. Biology of Spiders. Harvard University Press. ISBN 0-674-07432-7. [English translation of the original German book. Overview of spider anatomy and physiology. A great reference book.]
Levi HW and Levi LR. 1968. Spiders and Their Kin. Golden Press/Western Publishing Co. ISBN 0-307-24021-5. [A great little book for the amateur arachnologist. Profusely illustrated with scientifically accurate color drawings. Most useful in identifying spiders and other common arachnids to their orders and families. Illustrates commonly encountered species from around the world. Several reprintings and newer editions.]
Marshall S. 2001. Tarantulas and Other Arachnids, Second Edition. Barron's Educational Series. ISBN 0-8120-9315-1. [Easily one of the best books on tarantula care. Basic enough for the beginner, but with plenty of advanced information for the experienced keeper as well.]
Schultz SA and Schultz MJ. 1998. The Tarantula Keeper's Guide, Second Edition. Barron's Educational Series. ISBN 0-7641-0076-9. [Encyclopedic guide to tarantula biology and care.]
In addition, the American Tarantula Society publishes several extremely useful booklets describing various aspects of keeping tarantulas, other arachnids, and related topics. Most them are not listed here for lack of space. The booklets are small, inexpensive, easy to read, and contain good, solid, dependable information. People who are interested are encouraged to contact the American Tarantula Society bookstore for a complete listing, prices, and ordering information.
To get any of the books listed on this webpage, first check out your friendly neighborhood pet shops. Possibly at least a third of them carry at least some of these books in stock. If this fails, try any regular bookstore for a special order. If it's more convenient you can order them from web stores like amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.
There are lots more which might be listed, and we'll add them as we have time and can collect the information about them. Anyone who wants to nominate a book for entry on this list is encouraged to e-mail or surface mail the nomination to us for consideration.
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Copyright © 1998, Stanley A. Schultz and Marguerite J. Schultz.
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This page was initially created on 1998-July-17.
The last revision occurred on 2012-May-16.