I have been given a Blackwidow spider .

[poohie40065]

I was just given a Black Widow spider and I would like some input to see if I need to keep this. The person who gave her to me rescued her from being crystallized in one of the paperweight design, so of course I took her. My collection consists of only tarantulas. I know the risks with these, but I am unsure of this one, just wanted a few opinions. Thanks

 

[edesign]

no real risk provided you don't put your hand in there with it

i've been keeping a ~6cm L. mactans in a jar with no decorations whatsoever for about 3 weeks now? caught it outside my apt complex one night, i feed it a lil cricket every once in a while, usually when i feed my scorpions. Seems to be doing fine so far, has webbed up the lid to the sides of the jar. I didn't think they were very fast as it had never moved much before and when it did it would kinda mosey around. But the other night i had the lid partially open to feed it and i guess i breathed on it or something and next thing i knew it was at the bottom of the jar (from the top), faster than i could react. Now i just don't open the lid enough for it to escape, it's usually pretty calm. From what i've read they prefer to run than fight, even when in their own web.

a quick search on google or even the built in search engine on this site will probably yield your answer quicker than waiting for someone else to chime in. It's in the top right corner of the forum , good luck and welcome to the board!

 

[xanadu1015]

These are very easy to care for and are not aggressive at all. I currently have two females. I sprinkle a little water in the web once a week and feed a cricket about once to twice a week. Just offer food, you will usually get an idea of their habits. Also, a pickel jar can be used as an enclosure or any thing at a relative size. They don't require a large amount of space. With mine I buy silk leaves to put in the enclosure for them to web around. Just so you know, they are a shy type of spider so they may not always be in the open, but more often than not they are. This why a clear enclosure is best so you can keep an eye on them. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask me. Have fun!


Laura

 

[N!Nj4_M!k3]

I have three seperate females myself and i agree with both of you.

Although i have to remind to remove all eggsacs from the jar, the spider will produce egg sacs indeffinitly for the rest of its life, so its an necessary upkeep. Now considering you don't know if the widow mated in the wild before you accepted it, you should play it safe and move them outside from your residence. Blackwidows only need to mate once, and can store enough sperm to fertilize every eggsac it will ever lay therafter, i made the mistake of assuming the eggsac it laid 3 months into captivity was infertile when i recieved my first Widow. A mistake I regretted immediatly when i noticed a flury of tiny babies inside mommas jar, im just glad they never got out, i love the blackwidow, but not 50 of them infesting my house.

better safe than sorry.