Homecoming for Anastasia and questions

[cold blood]

Yes it is very tall, I didn't know they could climb glass.
If she makes like that I may unhouse her tonight, that should be fun.
She made another trip to the cotton ball to drink, then off to rest. So I got some more water, as soon as i opened up the top she ran to the water dish got defensive, would not let me get the cotton ball,shot some more hairs when i poured H2O in. I'd say she was dehydrated, al though she looks fit. I closed it up and she went right to drinking. Now i've got to suffer through the night hoping she's not inclind to climb. From what I've observed so far, I think/hope she sticks around the watering hole.

Something as simple as removal of a cotton ball shouldn't be an ordeal....I'm guessing you do not have the proper tools yet. You NEED to have a few sets of long tweezers, with these, removal of a bolus, dead cricket, or anything is as easy as picking it out. Never use your fingers

Thanks, yes it's a bit of a strain, but tonight I don't have the sterile substrate. I could bake some dirt, to make it sterile, but it'd be hard as a rock to fall on. I could get her back into her carrier, or i could remove the hide away- wich she's shown no intrest in, and hope she doesn't hook a claw.

NEVER sterilize your substrate. Doing so means the first things to colonize will have it all to themselves. In the future, just use it out of the bag...getting the right fertilizer/pesticide free soil is the most important thing.

 

[tapkoote]

[QUOTE="cold blood, post: 2527839, member: 82951"
NEVER sterilize your substrate. Doing so means the first things to colonize will have it all to themselves. In the future, just use it out of the bag...getting the right fertilizer/pesticide free soil is the most important thing.[/QUOTE]
Yes it's a risk, being a layman, this maybe a guess, as far as what she can handle. She/it/they have to live here with me and my flora and fana. Thats about as scientific as I can put the sterilized substrate in the house. Bringing out side substrate can't be too much worse. It's in a plastic bag from who knows where? Who knows whats in there. She's got cooked substrate with my hand bacteria, which hopefully will not attack, and what ever yeasts live in my house. hopefully any strong orginisums which took over first will be tempered by what ever is prevelent.
I can't argure as a layman, she did come out tonight to inspect the new decorations. How ever she spotted my movements and is in hiding. Sorry I no longer trust "just out of the bag" .
Viet Nam 69-70

 

[REEFSPIDER]

If she kills prey and doesn't eat it your should not add any more prey to her enclosure for atleast a week. Your going to over feed her if she is being offered food and not eating it or just killing it she is not gonna eat it. Brachypelma are notoriously ravenous pits and they will take down prey with gusto when they are hungry. As far as baking the substrate from the bag it is a pointless step on your part and you yourself said you are a newbie so I'm curious as to how much experience you've had to determine your findings. From a scientific standpoint I don't think you have enough evidence to support your baking of the substrate or why. But that is your choice. I'm gonna re iterate what I've already said. Leave your spider alone a bit your messing with the enclosure constantly is no better than improper housing. And it can just as easily cause a problem for your t.

 

[tapkoote]

As far as baking the substrate from the bag it is a pointless step on your part .

Thank you reef spider, I bought blocks of husk and it was too wet, when I put it in. She spent one day hanging on the glass. I baked the moisture out and she's happy now. The feeding part I'm learning. She'll get a cricket on Friday.

 

[REEFSPIDER]

What I'm sayin is maybe just leaving it to dry in the enclosure would have been a better route than removing the t again which you have already done a few times. I get your trying to do it the best you can but sometimes it's best to just let them be.

 

[tapkoote]

Spent the day in her new hideout. Came out and gave me a chance at some close up pictures. The flash didn't seem to bother her. She seems to start her day when the sun gets low in the sky.
Can anyone tell from these whether she is a femaile? Or do I have to wate for a molt.

 

[tapkoote]

Watched this B smithi do some yard work today. Spent 3 hrs, got about 1 1/2 hrs.
after fighting with utube- 15 minutes of really crappy video. But if you haven't seen your mexican red knee doing yard work - here ya go. I'm sorry the vid is such poor quality, but her movements are true blessings.
This is the short version- real time is at utube- Anas landscape real time.

 

[Octagon]

Watched this B smithi do some yard work today. Spent 3 hrs, got about 1 1/2 hrs.
after fighting with utube- 15 minutes of really crappy video. But if you haven't seen your mexican red knee doing yard work - here ya go. I'm sorry the vid is such poor quality, but her movements are true blessings.
This is the short version- real time is at utube- Anas landscape real time.

Thank you for making this lovely video. Her movements are fascinating and delightful to watch. (I told my smithi she has a lot of work to do if she wants to catch up with yours!). Are those coloured stones? One thing, though, and I hate to say it...but is there any chance if she climbed and fell on top of the pile of stones, she could hurt herself? Forgive me if I'm being too paranoid. Hopefully the experts here will weigh in if I am.

 

[tapkoote]

Are those coloured stones? One thing, though, and I hate to say it...but is there any chance if she climbed and fell on top of the pile of stones, she could hurt herself? Forgive me if I'm being too paranoid. Hopefully the experts here will weigh in if I am.

Thank you and yes there is a pile of fish gravel, short term experiment.
As far as falling, I've watched her jump down from the top twice. She's just under 4 inches and the top is 4 to 5 inches off the deck.

 

[tapkoote]

Last night around 10:30, I was ready to turn off the news and head to bed. But Ana decided to work the night shift, even with the reading light on. Which makes her forward facing eyes shine. So I cut the TV and watched her, till my eyes were blurry.
This is the high speed, if you’ve got the time, real time is on utube Anas landscaping night shift I,II,III.
Couple close ups show her grasping the bundles with her fangs and pedipalps - hauling it off like a huge bundle of clothes for the laundry room. Amazing.
You may see a couple crickets with jumping legs, who love her bunker also!
She has trouble with them.
The two walking crickets not so much, they didn’t make the big screen.
She also through dirt in her water dish and had to think about it a bit.
I replaced the gravel with a pile of planation mix, it was too wet, she didn’t like it.
I think that stuff sits wet in those sealed bags and starts to ferment in a warm pet shop. Just my guess, I’ll dry it out in the sun and try again.

 

[tapkoote]

did get a fair measurement, if it's a female she needs a couple more molts
a male may be done with the next one
measures 3 3/4 inches on the glass

 

[Andrea82]

Fascinating video. It seems like she is covering all the pebbles with substrate and webbing, as though she doesn't like it much and wants to cover up the rough edges. I love watching these kind of videos! Thanks for uploading

 

[Octagon]

Why do you think she was moving the pebbles into the bunker?

Again, great videos.

She certainly worked hard and long. Maybe she's getting time-and-half for working nights!

 

[darkness975]

Is her abdomen going to get a bald spot for sure?

They develop bald spots from setae flicking or by rubbing their setae off onto the area surrounding their burrows as a defense mechanism. They are not "guaranteed" to develop a bald spot. My B. smithi has yet to develop any kind of bald spot at all after her last molt. Which is fine with me. When I received her she did have a bald spot. But overall my girl is pretty chill.

You may see a couple crickets with jumping legs, who love her bunker also!

Prey items should not be left in the enclosure for more than a few hours at the most. The risk of the spider being injured by them is not worth it.

 

[tapkoote]

Fascinating video. It seems like she is covering all the pebbles with substrate and webbing, as though she doesn't like it much and wants to cover up the rough edges. I love watching these kind of videos! Thanks for uploading

My thought was she laid down a blanket, pulled the gravel over to it. And tried to bundle it all up.

They develop bald spots from setae flicking or by rubbing their setae off onto the area surrounding their burrows as a defense mechanism. They are not "guaranteed" to develop a bald spot. My B. smithi has yet to develop any kind of bald spot at all after her last molt. Which is fine with me. When I received her she did have a bald spot. But overall my girl is pretty chill.
She's got two bald spots, she flicked setae the first day I got her. My eyes are so old they don't have have all the pixels the camera does. Now that I spotted them, I can see the color change when she goes into premolt. Ana is anything but chill. She may be a Dana.


Prey items should not be left in the enclosure for more than a few hours at the most. The risk of the spider being injured by them is not worth it.

She seems to have a hunting behavior. Will not be fed with tongs, thinks I'm a pest or worse. She made circles starting in one corner ever increasing. Like sweeping the prey to the corners. When she came across one it jumped and the hunt was over for a while. She gets walking crickets now. From what I see those crickets were terrified of her. If she was out they were in the bunker, and out in the corners , when she was home. If she's near they don't even move their antena quiet as a church mouse.

Not sure about the gravel. The first two days she liked sitting on it, maybe because it was the highest point in the kingdom. Since she breathes close to the ground, maybe because it doesn’t smell like coconut dust.
When she started digging, I thought she was tunneling under the rock garden. When it started sliding into the hole, she looked like she was pondering how to deal with slides. Then she pulled all the loose stuff down, and acted like she wanted it in the bunker.
Now it looks like that 5 hour exercise was to make the bunker in to a hunting lair. Maybe it was just big enough for the prey to escape . Those two crickets were always nose to tail and always headed back to the bunker when the coast was clear. Right now they’re MIA, don’t know if she dispatched them or they tunneled them selves.
I know the gravel was taboo, might wear out the pads on her feet, it’s gone. Replaced by a hill of plantation mix, she went right to it and placed the front two feet on it. Then took off for the farthest corner. with in an hour it was fogging up the tank.
It’s out air drying, try it again next week, see if she likes it better than all those coconut hairs.
She’s got a routine, comes out when the sun is about 2 o’clock in the sky. Which I’d guess when the desert starts cooling off a bit. Stands vertical on the glass or hangs off the ledge on top, and do it for 3,4, 5, hours.
I had a garden spider spend the winter last year. She’d come out at night and hang upside down for a few hours.

 

[Andrea82]

It is better to not leave crickets in with her. If she decides to molt, crickets could do some serious damage to her while she is soft and not able to defend herself. You should take them out immediately, and remove any leftovers she doesn't eat within 12-24 hours.

 

[darkness975]

She seems to have a hunting behavior. Will not be fed with tongs, thinks I'm a pest or worse.

I never indicated that you should attempt tong feeding. I feed all mine by throwing the prey item in there and letting them get it on their own. They are more than capable.
Also some how your own words got mixed into the text you quoted from my orignal post. It is confusing.

I had a garden spider spend the winter last year. She’d come out at night and hang upside down for a few hours.

So was the Araneus sp. in those images you posted from 2016-01-17 outside all that time? I suppose it is not too unbelievable given the strange weather patterns last year making the winter warmer than usual.

 

[tapkoote]

It is better to not leave crickets in with her. If she decides to molt, crickets could do some serious damage to her while she is soft and not able to defend herself. You should take them out immediately, and remove any leftovers she doesn't eat within 12-24 hours.

I do under stand that, thats why I wanted to know about the bald spots turning dark. And premolt behavior.

 

[tapkoote]

I never indicated that you should attempt tong feeding. I feed all mine by throwing the prey item in there and letting them get it on their own. They are more than capable.
Also some how your own words got mixed into the text you quoted from my orignal post. It is confusing.
I'm sorry about the confusion. Still learning how this forum works. Earlier in this thread was told to get long tweezers, and watched feeding vids.


So was the Araneus sp. in those images you posted from 2016-01-17 outside all that time? I suppose it is not too unbelievable given the strange weather patterns last year making the winter warmer than usual.

Thank you for the scientific name, the English garden spider always disapears with october's first frost. I asumed they laid an egg sack and froze out. This one happened to capture a leaf to winter in. Survived two freezes. Some how knew when the season of freeze was past.

 

[darkness975]

Thank you for the scientific name, the English garden spider always disapears with october's first frost. I asumed they laid an egg sack and froze out. This one happened to capture a leaf to winter in. Survived two freezes. Some how knew when the season of freeze was past.

I cannot imagine it had much to eat through the winter, unless you fed it. The cold kept its metabolism down so it required significantly less food to survive. If it is indeed the "European garden spider" then you are likely referring to Araneus diadematus. You will find that in this hobby the scientific names are very important, since there are probably a thousand different spiders with the common name "garden spider."

The reason you were told to get long tweezers for your Tarantula is so that you can perform tank maintenance without needing to stick your bare hands in the tank. The tweezers are used for picking up food leftovers and for grabbing the water dish to clean it. Sometimes they get oddly possessive of their water dishes.

In fact, on the subject of water dishes I would advise you to use souffle cups. You can buy them by the sleeve at places like Walmart or online. Ask @Poec54 where he gets his from. I use 2 ounce souffle cups for most of my Tarantulas and Scorpions. I fill up the cup and when the water eventually evaporates down I refill it again. After a couple weeks or so I throw it out and grab a new one. It prevents you from having to scrub the slime that eventually will form on the plastic or porcelain "permanent" dishes that people use. Just swap it out for a clean one and refill it and you're good for another couple weeks.