Agelenidae keeping

[LegsArms]

I used to keep agelenopsis sp. at a museum and may start at home. Wanted to offer my tips/experiences as well as a place for others to share theirs and ask questions about keeping any spiders in the Agelenidae family. I live on Long Island in New York, so my experience is mainly with grass spiders, particularly A. pennsylvanica, but I find all the funnel webbers intriguing.

 

[The wolf]

I'm a massive fan of erategena atrica and have kept many in the past ,and still do

 

[LegsArms]

When I kept A. pennsylvanica grass spiders the hardest part was getting them to be visible. I found that providing them with a tubular structure facing toward the large front wall of the tank encouraged them to build a funnel that could be peered into. I could usually see the spider even when hiding, at least get a look at a little face in the back of the funnel. Using rounded sections of bark worked well, like from dead maple branches or young cedars.

During parts of the day the spider would sit out at the front of its opening, or "front porch" as I called it, waiting for a bug. This seemed common in morning and afternoon, and more so when the spider had not just eaten. Usually after meals it would hide for a day. These spiders are very keen and sensitive to vibrations, so keeping the tank on a very stable surface is key to preventing it from hiding when you walk over.

The spider would sometimes extend the sheet webbing further than it might in the wild, covering the entire bottom of the tank after a while. I would sometimes remove some but be careful not to make it too messy or the spider will become dissatisfied with the whole spot and you may need to re-do the tank. The extra webbing would increase it's sensitivity to vibrations so it's good not to let it get out of control.

For feeding I would have to pull the back legs off a small cricket and drop it onto the sheet web. Other small insects work too of course, but since the web isn't sticky you want something that will stay put for a second while the spider runs out and paralyzes it. If it's too large the spider will feel that and will not come out to eat it. They are very good at telling what is on the sheet by feel. They will not mistake your hand for an insect, even with the lightest touch.

They are extremely fast and that's a big part of the fun of feeding them. If they get out they will book it across the room and can be hard to catch. Try different materials to encourage interesting webs. Try a number of funnel-shaped or tubular objects, and when they pick one, remove the others before the web gets in the way. Enjoy watching these very agile spiders!

 

[The wolf]

When I kept A. pennsylvanica grass spiders the hardest part was getting them to be visible. I found that providing them with a tubular structure facing toward the large front wall of the tank encouraged them to build a funnel that could be peered into. I could usually see the spider even when hiding, at least get a look at a little face in the back of the funnel. Using rounded sections of bark worked well, like from dead maple branches or young cedars.

During parts of the day the spider would sit out at the front of its opening, or "front porch" as I called it, waiting for a bug. This seemed common in morning and afternoon, and more so when the spider had not just eaten. Usually after meals it would hide for a day. These spiders are very keen and sensitive to vibrations, so keeping the tank on a very stable surface is key to preventing it from hiding when you walk over.

The spider would sometimes extend the sheet webbing further than it might in the wild, covering the entire bottom of the tank after a while. I would sometimes remove some but be careful not to make it too messy or the spider will become dissatisfied with the whole spot and you may need to re-do the tank. The extra webbing would increase it's sensitivity to vibrations so it's good not to let it get out of control.

For feeding I would have to pull the back legs off a small cricket and drop it onto the sheet web. Other small insects work too of course, but since the web isn't sticky you want something that will stay put for a second while the spider runs out and paralyzes it. If it's too large the spider will feel that and will not come out to eat it. They are very good at telling what is on the sheet by feel. They will not mistake your hand for an insect, even with the lightest touch.

They are extremely fast and that's a big part of the fun of feeding them. If they get out they will book it across the room and can be hard to catch. Try different materials to encourage interesting webs. Try a number of funnel-shaped or tubular objects, and when they pick one, remove the others before the web gets in the way. Enjoy watching these very agile spiders!

My e.atricas I have found are so much more spooky when in larger enclosures I hadn't realised this was why thanks
From what I see e.atrica are a lot fussier than agelenopsis I'd be interested to see how our agelena do when they start reappearing in spring

 

[Wolfspidurguy]

I used to keep agelenopsis sp. at a museum and may start at home. Wanted to offer my tips/experiences as well as a place for others to share theirs and ask questions about keeping any spiders in the Agelenidae family. I live on Long Island in New York, so my experience is mainly with grass spiders, particularly A. pennsylvanica, but I find all the funnel webbers intriguing.

I love these guys just wish they would come chill here. At my grandma's house every bush has like 40 and it's getting harder and harder to resist packing a couple and shipping them from CA to TN

 

[The wolf]

I love these guys just wish they would come chill here. At my grandma's house every bush has like 40 and it's getting harder and harder to resist packing a couple and shipping them from CA to TN

They're like wolf spiders with webs which I know will be right up your street