new member and some questions!

[simone ponzetto]

Hello everyone!
my name is Simone, I am from Italy.
i have several species of stick insects and spiny assassin bug but i am not very expert in caring for spiders, I only have a Grammostola pulchripes female, hoping to expand and learn more!
here is my first question
I read about Sicarius sp. and I am stunned by their behaviour; unortunately here in Italy they are illegal so it's just a curiosity but I have read that they are highly venomous, is this true? and for all of this Genus or only for some species?
i would like to know their venom composition (proteins and so on)...I have looked for info on the net but i prefer hear from experts.
I am trying to know as much as I can about this fascinating Genus, here in Italy we have a relative, Loxosceles rufescens!
I hope not to have bothered you with my long post!
regards,
simone

 

[NYAN]

An interesting thread we had about this. http://arachnoboards.com/threads/so-turns-out-sand-spiders-are-the-most-venomous.309225/


sicarius venom, just like recluse venom contains sphingomyelinese D. Sicarius venom is capible of causing tissue necrosis and other symptoms. The venom is still widely unknown though.

 

[Joogvanhedel]

Welkom. Sorry i cant help you with your question. But if your in italy, there are awesome true's. Still not in my collection, Lycosa tarantula, Latrodectus tredecimguttatus maby, Ischnothele caudata and the Loxosceles rufescens i also like! Wish i was in Italy

Greats from the Netherlands.

 

[simone ponzetto]

An interesting thread we had about this. http://arachnoboards.com/threads/so-turns-out-sand-spiders-are-the-most-venomous.309225/


sicarius venom, just like recluse venom contains sphingomyelinese D. Sicarius venom is capible of causing tissue necrosis and other symptoms. The venom is still widely unknown though.

thank you for your help, very appreciated! since I am studying biology maybe one day i will be able to study this spiders personally

Welkom. Sorry i cant help you with your question. But if your in italy, there are awesome true's. Still not in my collection, Lycosa tarantula, Latrodectus tredecimguttatus maby, Ischnothele caudata and the Loxosceles rufescens i also like! Wish i was in Italy

Greats from the Netherlands.

yes I usually hang out in the woods in order to find spiders and insects and i have seen L. tarantula female with slings!
unfortunately L. tredecimguttatus is not common where i live

 

[basin79]

Hello everyone!
my name is Simone, I am from Italy.
i have several species of stick insects and spiny assassin bug but i am not very expert in caring for spiders, I only have a Grammostola pulchripes female, hoping to expand and learn more!
here is my first question
I read about Sicarius sp. and I am stunned by their behaviour; unortunately here in Italy they are illegal so it's just a curiosity but I have read that they are highly venomous, is this true? and for all of this Genus or only for some species?
i would like to know their venom composition (proteins and so on)...I have looked for info on the net but i prefer hear from experts.
I am trying to know as much as I can about this fascinating Genus, here in Italy we have a relative, Loxosceles rufescens!
I hope not to have bothered you with my long post!
regards,
simone

Such a shame you aren't allowed to keep Sicarius sp. They're fascinating little spiders. Seeing them bury with their prey is so comical.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Frankly a L.rufescens is by far IMO more interesting than their African 'cousins' (S.hahni), for that they aren't that reclusive, at least.
My garages and cellars are full of those lovely six eyed buggers. Overall I'm a Theraphosidae man, however.

Such a shame you aren't allowed to keep Sicarius sp.

I know what you mean but I can guarantee you that it's fine that way. I remember all the crap happened in 2003 when the Italian politicians, in no time, created that dumb 203 law, as I remember well the struggle of the Italian Arachnids Society (and community) for fix the whole issue.

For make a long (and still today controversial) story short, in the process we sacrificed the potentially lethal and (really) medically significant venomous arachnids for save what remained of the house, on fire.

 

[The Snark]

since I am studying biology

I am not intending to sound pedantic or cynical here. Since you are studying biology you are becoming or will become aware just how difficult analyses of venoms is. Chemical composition barely scratches the surface and when it comes to complex protein molecules and how they interact with varying biological forms, treatises and even doctorates have come about. A good example would be latrodectus venom which is pretty much fully understood chemical composition wise but the why and how behind the venom, to be precise, seven different proteins, is obscured in millions of years of evolution. Latrodectin has been studied for more than 50 years to produce the information we now have.
Lots of info on Latrodectus and it's venoms on @Widowman10 site: https://sites.google.com/site/widowman10/widows

 

[simone ponzetto]

I am not intending to sound pedantic or cynical here. Since you are studying biology you are becoming or will become aware just how difficult analyses of venoms is. Chemical composition barely scratches the surface and when it comes to complex protein molecules and how they interact with varying biological forms, treatises and even doctorates have come about. A good example would be latrodectus venom which is pretty much fully understood chemical composition wise but the why and how behind the venom, to be precise, seven different proteins, is obscured in millions of years of evolution. Latrodectin has been studied for more than 50 years to produce the information we now have.
Lots of info on Latrodectus and it's venoms on @Widowman10 site: https://sites.google.com/site/widowman10/widows

I know that is very complex, all biology is very hard but also very fascinating.
i love understanding how our world works and what we still have to learn!

Frankly a L.rufescens is by far IMO more interesting than their African 'cousins' (S.hahni), for that they aren't that reclusive, at least.
My garages and cellars are full of those lovely six eyed buggers. Overall I'm a Theraphosidae man, however.



I know what you mean but I can guarantee you that it's fine that way. I remember all the crap happened in 2003 when the Italian politicians, in no time, created that dumb 203 law, as I remember well the struggle of the Italian Arachnids Society (and community) for fix the whole issue.

For make a long (and still today controversial) story short, in the process we sacrificed the potentially lethal and (really) medically significant venomous arachnids for save what remained of the house, on fire.

you are right, the 2003 law was a blow but now the majority of tarantulas are allowed in the esotic animals events except Harpactirella genus, so i consider me to be lucky and i am planning to get other species besides my Grammostola

 

[Chris LXXIX]

you are right, the 2003 law was a blow but now the majority of tarantulas are allowed in the esotic animals events except Harpactirella genus, so i consider me to be lucky

Lucky, yes, indeed we are. But wasn't 'Luck' per se, mostly thanks to the struggle of Dr. Dino Schiff and the others

I do remember well those crappy days when we were viewed as 'criminals' and 'sociopaths' by the average Italian. Irony, back then, the dieharder keepers in Italy were really few in numbers... or 'quattro gatti', like we say