Possible Death Curl

[WeeabooWaifu]

So when I checked my Ts this morning, my A. geniculata was in what looked to be a death curl. Fearing the worst, I opened his enclosure and pulled his bark hide off of him (he has an impressive burrow underneath it which he was in). When I picked up the bark, he sprinted like a normal terrified sling, so I put it back. Then he curled up again.

So, was that an actual death curl? His legs are basically translucent because he's so tiny, so I couldn't really tell if they were directly under him or not. It also froze last night because Oklahoma's weather doesn't make sense. If they get too cold will they curl up? I changed his water and put some drips of water on the moss he uses as one wall of his burrow, and also moved him to a warmer area.

What do you guys think, should I be worried? If you want pictures, I won't be able to post any until I return home in 3-4 hours; I'll update then too.

Edit: he is also in very obvious premolt, if that helps anything.

 

[Liquifin]

Sounds like a stress curl not a death curl. Just keep your T. around 70 degrees or more for a safety temp. I wouldn't really much, it also sounds like you just got the T. not to long ago, which is probably why it was in a stress curl. So just let the T. adapt to its home.

 

[WeeabooWaifu]

Sounds like a stress curl not a death curl. Just keep your T. around 70 degrees or more for a safety temp. I wouldn't really much, it also sounds like you just got the T. not to long ago, which is probably why it was in a stress curl. So just let the T. adapt to its home.

That's what I'm hoping. I've had him a few days over a month

 

[Nightstalker47]

If it was in a death curl, then it would be quite lethargic and incapable of swift movement.

Just sounds like you disturbed a resting tarantula.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Was it like this with its knees over its eyes?



That's a stress curl and you'll see them in one from time to time, this girl just moulted, hence the stress curl.

 

[cold blood]

His legs are basically translucent because he's so tiny

This is a sign of a freshly molted t.

 

[WeeabooWaifu]

Was it like this with its knees over its eyes?

View attachment 272716

That's a stress curl and you'll see them in one from time to time, this girl just moulted, hence the stress curl.

Yeah, but his back legs were pulled up really close to his body too. I'm sure I'm just worrying too much, he's usually pretty active and out and about for such a tiny thing so seeing him act like that worried me.

 

[WeeabooWaifu]

This is a sign of a freshly molted t.

He's only about .5-.75 inches and has been almost totally clear since I got him except for a black spot on his abdomen. I'm 99% sure he hasn't molted, unless he molted out into premolt haha. His abdomen is super fat, dark, and shiny and he's been refusing food for 2 weeks now.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

This is a sign of a freshly molted t.

Yeah but small slings are basically translucent when you shine a light on them as their exoskeletons are so thin that they don't block most of the light.

 

[WeeabooWaifu]

I just checked on him and he looks a little better, but when I move his enclosure he usually runs around a little bit and he didn't move at all this time. Is it possible he's just super close to molting? Lethargy is a sign of that, right?

 

[Lokee85]

I just checked on him and he looks a little better, but when I move his enclosure he usually runs around a little bit and he didn't move at all this time. Is it possible he's just super close to molting? Lethargy is a sign of that, right?

The closer they get to molting, the more sluggish and lethargic they get, so that in combination with how dark you said he is leads me to conclude he's likely very close to molting.

My advice is to leave him alone, as long as his water is full. Moving the enclosure around can stress him out even if he doesn't move around, and if you disturb him/move him mid-molt, it can be dangerous for your T.

Also, sometimes when the legs are curled under in an apparent death curl, they may just be grooming. I've watched several of my Ts take on what could be described as a death curl pose, and they were just cleaning their legs. Next time, wait and watch for a bit and see if there's any movements before disturbing, and you may just find that your baby is taking a bath.