Possible Stridulation in Brachypelma???

[miss moxie]

I thought only some species were capable of stridulation, but I swear I just saw/heard my B. auratum male attempt it-- and kind of pull it off actually. I picked up his enclosure to look inside and see if he's flipped yet (looongesssttt pre-molt eeeevvverrr) and breathed through my nose down into the KK through the slats without really thinking about it bothering him.

The minute my breath hit him, I watched his pedipalps and chelicerae begin to move and sure enough heard what sounded like stridulation. It was an audible brushing sort of sound, akin to dry bristles on a wooden surface. His Pedipalps moved in an almost cycling motion and his chelicerae shifted up and down against one another. It happened pretty quick but I was so perplexed I watched the whole thing raptly. I attempted to get him to do it again with another breath-- nope, nothing doing. One trick pony for now. Perhaps tomorrow I will see if I can get him to do it again and take a video. But with my luck he'll flip in the next half hour just because I want to do that.

I've never even seen any of my other tarantulas do this before so I'm not exactly well-versed in stridulation. Can Brachypelma stridulate? Have they always been able to stridulate and I was woefully uneducated on the subject? Will Batman be able to thwart the Joker's evil plot???

 

[KezyGLA]

Yes they are able to stridulate.

B. boehmei are probably the ones who do it most from that genus. Listen carefully next time a boehmei flicks at you and you will more than likely hear the stridulation.

Many species have stridulatory organs. Infact, only few lack them

 

[miss moxie]

Yes they are able to stridulate.

B. boehmei are probably the ones who do it most from that genus. Listen carefully next time a boehmei flicks at you and you will more than likely hear the stridulation.

Many species have stridulatory organs. Infact, only few lack them

I don't have any boehmei just yet, but that's very interesting. I had no idea even the classic beginner genera Brachypelma could stridulate.

See Kezy? I told you I learn all sorts of things from you. Thanks for responding!

 

[Rittdk01]

Listen carefully next time a boehmei flicks at you and you will more than likely hear the stridulation.

If a tarantula is flicking I'm getting the lid on and getting my head away asap.

 

[KezyGLA]

If a tarantula is flicking I'm getting the lid on and getting my head away asap.

You will only hear it if you put your ear right up to the carapace

 

[MetalMan2004]

@miss moxie its funny you bring this up. When I got my aurstum pair at about the same time, the first thing the male did as I tried to get him out of his shipping container was stridulate nice and loud. My female doesn't do it but my male does it almost everytime I try to feed him.

I didn't know they did this either but after lots of digging found a couple of really old threads that argued that they probably do...

Its kind of cool to know that I have a stridulating T!

 

[miss moxie]

@miss moxie its funny you bring this up. When I got my aurstum pair at about the same time, the first thing the male did as I tried to get him out of his shipping container was stridulate nice and loud. My female doesn't do it but my male does it almost everytime I try to feed him.

I didn't know they did this either but after lots of digging found a couple of really old threads that argued that they probably do...

Its kind of cool to know that I have a stridulating T!

Agreed. I wouldn't get a T -just- for the stridulation but to know I have one that will do it if I do something it disapproves of is interesting. A new experience after all this time.

 

[awiec]

Unrelated but pretty sure Iridopelma sp recife can do a hiss as well, I get threat poses pretty regularly so I think I've heard it a few times.

 

[darkness975]

I picked up his enclosure to look inside and see if he's flipped yet

Forgive my unrelated inquiry, but would it not be better to look without picking up in case it is flipped?

 

[miss moxie]

Forgive my unrelated inquiry, but would it not be better to look without picking up in case it is flipped?

I was going to explain this, but thought it might be too detailed. Along with my femur being permanently fused to my pelvis with a metal plate and nine bolts, I've got scoliosis and a plethora of black problems that mean I can't really bend over to look at something low as well as the average person, and his terrarium is on one of the lower shelves. I do my best not to let my handicap get in the way of day to day routine, but that's sometimes easier said than done.

Annoying? Sure. But I get the really good parking spots.

 

[darkness975]

I was going to explain this, but thought it might be too detailed. Along with my femur being permanently fused to my pelvis with a metal plate and nine bolts, I've got scoliosis and a plethora of black problems that mean I can't really bend over to look at something low as well as the average person, and his terrarium is on one of the lower shelves. I do my best not to let my handicap get in the way of day to day routine, but that's sometimes easier said than done.

Annoying? Sure. But I get the really good parking spots.

Sorry to hear

 

[miss moxie]

Sorry to hear

It's alright. You have to accept the hand you've been dealt right? It happened when I was eleven so I've spent longer like this than I ever did as an able-bodied individual, and it could always be worse.

 

[AmberDawnDays]

What is stridulate? Someone said hissing. I've never heard of this before. Where can I find more info?

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

What is stridulate? Someone said hissing. I've never heard of this before. Where can I find more info?

Stridulation is the process of making a sound when two body parts on a spider are rubbed together. In tarantulas, stridulation is performed by the entanglement of usually two different types of hairs or spines located between the palp and leg 1, between the chelicerae, between the chelicerae and the palp, and/ or between legs 1 and 2. When these hairs and/ or spines are rubbed together by the tarantula, a sound akin to hissing is produced. The process can be thought of something similar as pulling apart two pieces of Velcro. One side of Velcro contains hooks, the other loops. When pulled apart, the two pieces produce a sound as the hooks pull away from the loops.

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

I've never even seen any of my other tarantulas do this before so I'm not exactly well-versed in stridulation. Can Brachypelma stridulate? Have they always been able to stridulate and I was woefully uneducated on the subject? Will Batman be able to thwart the Joker's evil plot???

Yes, all Brachypelma species can stridulate. The presence of a stridulating organ is one of the generic characters of the genus Brachypelma. Whether all will or not is a different matter, but they all can. If I can get my lazy butt working this weekend, I will get you a picture of it on Brachypelma auratum.

 

[Andrea82]

What is stridulate? Someone said hissing. I've never heard of this before. Where can I find more info?

It sounds like this:

 

[miss moxie]

What is stridulate? Someone said hissing. I've never heard of this before. Where can I find more info?

AphonopelmaTX did a great job explaining the anatomy of it. It's basically a defense mechanism, a warning to tell you they're ticked off and you're about to get bit or haired.

 

[Andrea82]

It sounds like this:

I'm sorry about the first video in my post, I think I posted the wrong one...
Edited the post

 

[keks]

It sounds like this:

I am surprised that they apparently only stridulate and don't bite for a long time, even when disturbed furthermore?

 

[Andrea82]

I am surprised that they apparently only stridulate and don't bite for a long time, even when disturbed furthermore?

I think it's because lashing out and biting actually makes them more vulnerable to get hurt themselves. Threatening and stridulating is an effort to keep the predators at a safe distance. They sometimes combine it though; the Queen was definitely striking
They can keep it up for a pretty long time as well. When I went house my Princess, she kept her posture after rehousing for a solid ten minutes even though the lid was on and she wasn't disturbed anymore