Dec 26, 2025
Socotra Island Blue Baboon Spider (Monocentropus balfouri), family Theraphosidae, endemic to Socotra Island, a small island in the Indian Ocean south of Yemen and east of Somalia
photograph by Vojtěch Víta
seen from Portugal
seen from Malaysia
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Saudi Arabia
seen from India
seen from China
seen from Italy
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
seen from United States
seen from Italy
seen from Türkiye
seen from United Kingdom
seen from China
seen from Italy
seen from Japan
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from Italy
seen from Italy
Socotra Island Blue Baboon Spider (Monocentropus balfouri), family Theraphosidae, endemic to Socotra Island, a small island in the Indian Ocean south of Yemen and east of Somalia
photograph by Vojtěch Víta
Socotra Island Blue Baboon Tarantula (Monocentropus balfouri)
6, 10, & 24
6) favourite animal?
hmm... probably iggy but only because there’s a little version of him living inside my head that jumps out every now and again to cause chaos
10) manga or anime?
hmm in terms of style it depends... definitely anime for 1, 2, 4 and 5, probably manga for 3 though bc i prefer the style & everyone is overall more. human? in it? but otherwise i’m not sure considering the manga parts i’ve read haven’t been adapted yet (excluding p3 😔) !!
24) which jojo would you get on with the best?
hmm probably josuke or jolyne!! we could get up to a lot of fuckery together & also... wife moment 🥺🥺
jojo ask game !
Monocentropus balfouri juvenile, throwing up an adorable threat posture.
Monocentropus balfouri | Socotra Island Blue Baboon (0.0.1 spiderling, 1″)
Still too young to start seeing the blue, but growing like a weed!
The Socotra Island Blue Baboon Tarantula (Monocentropus balfouri) is one of a very few, and probably the most famous species of tarantula that can be kept communally. Most tarantulas can be cannibalistic and will eat another tarantula in the same enclosure. But this species has been kept communally for many years with high levels of success. They have even been observed sharring prey. To learn more, check out my video about the Socotra Island Blue Baboon on my YouTube channel linked below.
The Monocentropus balfouri known commonly in the hobby as the Socotra Island Blue Baboon was described by Pocock in 1897 and is an Old World
Monocentropus balfouri; 2″ juvenile.
5-7-4
Which is better?
Italian cruiser Aquila
Monocentropus
Aquila was an Italian Regia Marina (Royal Navy) scout cruiser in commission from 1917 to 1937. She was laid down for the Royal Romanian Navy as the destroyer Vifor but the Kingdom of Italy requisitioned her while she was under construction. She served in the Regia Marina during World War I, seeing action in the later stages of the Adriatic campaign. In 1928, she took part in rescue operations in the Adriatic Sea for the sunken Italian submarine F 14.
Monocentropus is a genus of tarantulas that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1897. As of December 2025 it officially contains two species, found in Madagascar and in Yemen: M. balfouri and M. lambertoni. Though recently, the position of M. lambertoni has been put into question, being deemed an incerta sedis.