Wolf Spider care?

[darkness975]

@Shane Leoric Unfortunately you probably do not have much longer with that specimen.

 

[Shane Leoric]

Unfortunately you probably do not have much longer with that specimen.

the one in the pictures or the tank? Since going to work and returning the other one has come back up and spun a net for itself inside the curl of the leaves. I've introduced some crickets in case it needs to feed but so far no development

 

[darkness975]

Mature males are on borrowed time. That is the one I was talking about.

 

[Shane Leoric]

You were right. The male specimen I had has given up. He hasnt moved or eaten and hasn't responded to touch/light/sound ect. This morning I found him curled and stiff

 

[Tigrosa]

PS Again with tropical animals need water. One third of Thailand's tropics is arid barren desert 6 months out of the year. The rainy seasons are just that, seasonal. And sweltering hot and dry the rest of the time. Animals like roaming predator spiders love the arid time of year. It forces the prey to concentrate in small areas creating food fests.

Are we talking about a species from Thailand? No, we're not. We're talking about wolf spiders from temperate western regions, which are almost always found in places that have access to fresh water. Just because there isn't rain or a stream doesn't mean there isn't water there, it just means you can't see any. Species from regions that have monsoon/arid cycles have evolved to deal with these changing conditions... during the dry season, many either aestivate or seek underground water sources.

I stated already that arid-zone species are an exception, so I'm not sure what point you're even trying to get at here. Go ahead and try to keep a Tigrosa or Hogna species without water, and let me know how it goes. It'll probably make a nice, easy-to-pin specimen

Also: I'm not sure where you get that wolf spiders like dry, arid climates to hunt. I'm guessing you haven't done much field observation of these animals or you'd know that the best time to find them is a temperate, humid night just before dusk... hardly the arid desert you're describing.

There are definitely some species that don't need water, and drink either from plants or absorb moisture from their food. Non-desert dwelling lycosids are not those species.

I've seen a lot of your posts on here and I have a lot of respect for your experiences and your knowledge, dare I even say wisdom. But you're absolutely wrong on this one.

 

[Venom1080]

What species do you keep? Desert species obviously don't need much water, but if you keep a temperate or tropical species, they absolutely do.

Also - I don't doubt that they can survive on a simple diet but I don't know how you could argue that such a generalistic predator doesn't benefit from a varied diet?

i would of responded 20 days ago if you replied to my post. didnt see this till now.

i keep whatever i catch around my home. i dont know the species. im in southern Ontario near Windsor, to give you a idea of what i have. temperate deciduous biome to be exact. i keep them all the same, mainly dry sub with a water bowl for hydration. food once or twice a week. im not sure how you can argue that they benefit from a varied diet so much, theres no proof i know of. crickets, mealworms, and moths keep all my collection alive and well.

 

[The Snark]

Are we talking about a species from Thailand? No, we're not.

Was referring to people equating 'tropical' to steaming humid jungle. This isn't just about Thailand but the tropics zones around the world. At or near zero precipitation with temperatures exceeding 110F for several months each year.

See Sahel region: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahel
"The Sahel has a tropical, hot steppe climate (Köppen climate classification BSh). The climate is typically hot, sunny, dry and somewhat windy all year long. The Sahel's climate is similar to, but less extreme than, the climate of the Sahara desert located just to the north."

Also: I'm not sure where you get that wolf spiders like dry, arid climates to hunt. I'm guessing you haven't done much field observation of these animals or you'd know that the best time to find them is a temperate, humid night just before dusk... hardly the arid desert you're describing.

Almost all of my knowledge is field observation.

 

[Tigrosa]

Interesting you'd mention that as lycosidae diversity seems to get significantly thinner around the tropics... even in very wet places like Amazonia, they are usually replaced by ctenids or other convergently similar spiders...

the warmer places that have lots of wolf spiders (IE: Florida) are usually pretty wet, and I've noticed heightened activity after rainfall

 

[The Snark]

Interesting you'd mention that as lycosidae diversity seems to get significantly thinner around the tropics... even in very wet places like Amazonia, they are usually replaced by ctenids or other convergently similar spiders...

the warmer places that have lots of wolf spiders (IE: Florida) are usually pretty wet, and I've noticed heightened activity after rainfall

This is very complex and perplexing. What regulates the lycosid population around here is, it appears, the predator population. There is a lot of fluctuation and unpredictability so speaking generally. Lycos out in the daytime are history. Future bird poop to be precise. Mynas rule all. That dictates the times they are out and hunting. At night the sparassids rule. Lycos that stray far from their hides don't have a chance. Think a wolf vs an industrial grade eight legged cheetah.
So the lyco populations are, here anyway, pretty rigidly dictated by various predators. Like right now, lycos are rare. We've had a lot of sparassids the past 4 or 5 years and I see a lyco once every 2 or 3 weeks.

So if you have a high density population of lycos, it is a safe bet there is a low population of certain predators.

 

[Tigrosa]

The only real nocturnal spider predator we have here, other than frogs, is probably the fishing spider. But they seem to be localized to mature forests associated with swamps, whereas wolves prefer rocky hillsides and ridgelines.

 

[The Snark]

The only real nocturnal spider predator we have here, other than frogs, is probably the fishing spider. But they seem to be localized to mature forests associated with swamps, whereas wolves prefer rocky hillsides and ridgelines.

Sounds like an opportunity to check things out. Do some stalking and eye shine, seeing how far they tend to venture from their hides.

 

[dopamine]

We've got these giant wolf spiders here in AZ. Saw one in my backyard that had to have had a 3.5-4" leg span. Hard to catch these guys though.

 

[Veles]

This is very complex and perplexing. What regulates the lycosid population around here is, it appears, the predator population. There is a lot of fluctuation and unpredictability so speaking generally. Lycos out in the daytime are history. Future bird poop to be precise. Mynas rule all. That dictates the times they are out and hunting. At night the sparassids rule. Lycos that stray far from their hides don't have a chance. Think a wolf vs an industrial grade eight legged cheetah.
So the lyco populations are, here anyway, pretty rigidly dictated by various predators. Like right now, lycos are rare. We've had a lot of sparassids the past 4 or 5 years and I see a lyco once every 2 or 3 weeks.

So if you have a high density population of lycos, it is a safe bet there is a low population of certain predators.

I find some of these statements rather asinine.

Lycosidae tend to maul sparassids at similar size.

Moatly do to the fact that they are more robust, therefore overpower sparassids more easily.

 

[The Snark]

Lycosidae tend to maul sparassids at similar size.
Moatly do to the fact that they are more robust, therefore overpower sparassids more easily.

I've observed 3 or 4 encounters. Sparassid runs over the top of the lyco, bites and it's over.
What have you observed?

I find some of these statements rather asinine.

What others?

One peculiarity. I've bust open numerous mud wasp nests. It's almost always a Lyco inside. Haven't seen a Huntsman yet. But the wasps are day hunters and lycos almost never come out except at night and sparassids are quite visible during the day as they lurk on walls and tree trunks.

 

[Veles]

I've observed 3 or 4 encounters. Sparassid runs over the top of the lyco, bites and it's over.
What have you observed?

No idea what you have observed but here is some tangible evidence:

I will find a video with larger specimens too.

My personal observation is no different, lycosidae being more robust just brute forces the sparassid down and eats it.

Whatothers?

One peculiarity. I've bust open numerous mud wasp nests. It's almost always a Lyco inside. Haven't seen a Huntsman yet. But the wasps are day hunters and lycos almost never come out except at night and sparassids are quite visible during the day as they lurk on walls and tree trunks.

I was talking about your sparassids statements.
They are not 8 legged industrial cheetahs but spiders with build not suited to combat other similar sized, active hunting spiders.

 

[The Snark]

They very much are the cheetah of the arach world. Not the most powerful but very fast take down oriented.

I'm taking two exceptions to your postings. First, you are promoting videos of fights between animals under artificial circumstances.
Second, the use of the word asinine: stupid, foolish, brainless. Perhaps I am poorly informed, but quite willing to learn at the worst.
Your word choice, and the underlying sentiments, are borderline a personal attack.

 

[Veles]

They very much are the cheetah of the arach world. Not the most powerful but very fast take down oriented.

This is beside the matter.
I was merely pointing to the wrong parts of your statement, that being that sparassids are some wolf spider killing machines.
When in reality its the other way around.

I'm taking two exceptions to your postings. You are promoting fights between animals under artificial circumstances and the use of the word asinine: stupid, foolish, brainless. Poorly informed, and quite willing to learn at the worst.

Since when do the circumstances artificial or not matter?
Sparassids can climb glass if anything.
There is no unfair factors here.

 

[The Snark]

You have observed videos in a glass dish. I've observed encounters on the forest floor. Sparassids hunt like cheetahs. Said, done.

 

[Veles]

You have observed videos in a glass dish.

And?
I have observed them outside in the wild, but this is tangible evidence just in case.

I've observed encounters on the forest floor. Sparassids hunt like cheetahs. Said, done.

How they hunt is not the problem.
Prey they take is what i am talking about here.

 

[The Snark]

How they hunt is not the problem.
Prey they take is what i am talking about here.

So let's see 3 or 4 videos of Sparassids hunting in their natural environment.