# Thanatus vulgaris



## saltyscissors (Nov 22, 2009)

Found one of these beauties in a cricket tub. Bluish thorax with a single white stripe down the middle, pale creamy abdomen with a white stripe that slowly deteriorates as it gets closer to the spinnerets. BL about 4mm. Since moving it into its new enclosure (a small contact lens vial with a pathetically rolled up/crumpled piece of paper) it hasn't really moved much. Something to worry about? I thought they were quite active. Maybe it needs to settle in. Either way, it's stunningly beautiful. Will try to take pictures later, but the quality of the pictures I take with my camera is exceedingly embarrassing.


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## saltyscissors (Nov 23, 2009)

...............


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## saltyscissors (Nov 27, 2009)

Nobody has anything to offer?


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## jsloan (Nov 27, 2009)

saltyscissors said:


> Nobody has anything to offer?


Waiting for a picture.


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## LeilaNami (Nov 28, 2009)

All the ones that pulled out of the cricket containers usually just made a web and sat there...The most activity I saw from these guys was the making of an egg sac.  

On another note, I had to convince my store manager that this was indeed not a Loxosceles sp. (He even put a sign up warning all my coworkers...)


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## loxoscelesfear (Dec 2, 2009)

saltyscissors said:


> Found one of these beauties in a cricket tub. Bluish thorax with a single white stripe down the middle, pale creamy abdomen with a white stripe that slowly deteriorates as it gets closer to the spinnerets. BL about 4mm. Since moving it into its new enclosure (a small contact lens vial with a pathetically rolled up/crumpled piece of paper) it hasn't really moved much. Something to worry about? I thought they were quite active. Maybe it needs to settle in. Either way, it's stunningly beautiful. Will try to take pictures later, but the quality of the pictures I take with my camera is exceedingly embarrassing.


I see a trend here.  Is this your spider?   
http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=169145


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## saltyscissors (Dec 2, 2009)

loxoscelesfear said:


> I see a trend here.  Is this your spider?
> http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=169145


Yeah, and good luck too. When I bought the pinheads, I realised that I wouldn't really have enough spiders to feed (my jumper and juvie house spider) so the the pinheads would have disappeared by the time they had both had two crickets, so this spider saved me from wasting a bunch of crickets. 

Next year I'm gonna try collect some more crab spiders. I have D. dorsata, M. viata, Xysticus spp, Philodromus and Tibellus oblongus in mind. They would make good display pets, with their striking colours.


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## loxoscelesfear (Dec 2, 2009)

Just solved my Thanatus mystery.  They are coming in w/ the cricket shipments.  Duh.  Just found a sub-adult in the container as I was putting the pinheads into another enclosure.


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## saltyscissors (Dec 2, 2009)

Awesome, but warning: these guys are INCREDIBLY fast, and they defecate a lot too, which makes cleaning it out extremely risky. Maybe I need a more natural setup with plenty of hiding space, but since it's a foreign species I have no idea what its natural habitat is like.


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## loxoscelesfear (Dec 2, 2009)

Thanatus exotics? :?  I don't think they are.  They are normally found in prairie situations, but the ones showing up w/ the crickets are just making the best of a situation. Plenty of food and shelter, dang free-loaders.


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