Best web building spider as a pet?

[aimike]

Hi, I'm thinking of getting a spider (well I'm definitely getting one but it's taking time finding the right one).

I love spider webs and I'm fascinated by the way some spiders wrap up their prey. I want to get a fairly active spider, I don't mind getting a small/large/heated/cooled tank, I just want a spider that is active, builds amazing silky webs, and cocoons it's food. It doesn't have to be big or small (some of the largest webs have been built by tiny spiders)

Obviously, I'm not looking for a tarantula (which is about the only type of spider pet shops seem to sell around my area)

I guess I'm looking for an orb weaver spider, the jaw headed orb weaver looks okay, the golden orb weaver I don't find that pretty. Have you guys/girls got any suggestions?

This will be my first spider, but i am well into my adult years, and have had other pets in the past so I should be able to take proper care of them.

 

[Ratmosphere]

Is it going to be your first?

 

[aimike]

It will, I've been searching for months with very little sucess of finding the right type of spider (maybe im just picky) so thought I would come to the forums and ask for advice.

 

[Torech Ungol]

Orb weavers are hard to keep, from what I've read. If you're okay with a "pet hole," I'd recommend a Kukulcania hibernalis. They make great webs and are easy to keep. They're not very active, though, and their slow metabolism means that you'll only need to feed them every 2 or 3 weeks.

Eresus moravicus or Eresus walckanaeri are decent webbers, too, from what I've read, but they're pretty shy, too.

I can't think of any web spinner that is not an orb weaver and also not a shy, hidey spider, off hand.

 

[aimike]

Thanks @Torech Ungol

I've just been reading up on Kukulcania hibernalis, it looks pretty cool, it doesn't have to be actively walking around, just not fall asleep when it has prey

Although, reading up on Kukulcania hibernalis, they seem to have non sticky webbing, and its the silky sticky webbing that amazes me ( A bit like garden spiders, but the golden orb weaver looks like it produces lots more than a garden spider).

I'll look at your other suggestions now, thank you so much for giving me some ideas.

 

[Ratmosphere]

I'd agree with Kukulcania hibernalis. Get to a nice size, create awesome webbing, and are usually docile.

 

[aimike]

The webbing (from reading wiki) is not supposed to be sticky, does that mean they just pick the prey up and drag them back to a corner rather than wrap them up and play with the food in full display?

 

[Andee]

If you want orb webs you got to get orb weavers, but I never recommend them for a first species. Most people who have been in the hobby for years on end even do horrible with them. I recommend for a wonderful webbing spider and active species Badumna sp. but they are hugely individuals. So you get what you get with them.

 

[arachnoherp]

Good orbweaver if youve got a decent size enclosure like a tank or popup enclore are the nephila species. Also some of the other maygalomorphs web pretty heavilly

 

[Avic52300]

I heard GBB's are good, very big on web spinning!!! I hear they are docile, and are terrestrial. Very beautiful. Someone else on here will have better info than me though, I don't know a whole lot about them. Only hear say

 

[JumpingNerscylla]

I'm not too well versed with orb weavers and have only owned one, but the one I had was pretty active most of the time (she was a Cross Orb Weaver if I remember correctly), however, if you, for whatever reason don't get an orb weaver, I'd suggest a Latrodectus

 

[Andee]

Cross orb weavers and similar species that are less well known are definitely ones I recommend. I keep them and they don't need huge enclosures. The Agriope sp. and such, need larger enclosures, do best with square ones or any that have corners to use. All orbweavers are aroboreal and need medium to light foliage and need slightly high humidity.

 

[aimike]

For orb weavers from what I've been reading (mostly from this forum), keeping them alive and happy is hard. Putting then in a glass cage obviously kills them since they have no way to climb and weave, even if you put debris in the cage the glass walls will probably still make them very anxious and not help much, since they like to hide away and well.... eat/live.

I've read that some people have kept them in a mesh, which apparently works well, but observation in a mesh is harder.

They seem to love weaving in arches of lofts/basements, around lights in rooms, on the corners of ceilings, between branches of trees, or the corners of window panes (with frames around them). Basically, places where flies will be attracted to, or will stumble into.

I wonder if I could make a cage, where it was possible to simulate many of these points. Some how make the glass climable (many beams) and frame the inside of the glass to simulate a garden shed window, a small light to attract flies, some arches and overhangs.... basically, I guess that's called a shed, but a small version of it for a cage.

I do love orb weavers, I was hoping that there would be a common web building spider that many people keep successfully as a pet. Or even people that have found keeping orb weavers in a particular cage easy (if there is a type of cage, I would definitely buy one)

I will find a way to make it happy, and if they are so hard to keep ill start building a cage before I even think about buying the spider

@arachnoherp From videos, I do like nephila, they look like they have really thick beautiful silk, i just didnt know how hard it would be to get one that's happy indoors in a cage in the uk ( maybe that's one of the reasons that many spider lovers keep tarantulas)

 

[aimike]

@Andee

Are cross orbweavers commonly the ones you would see in a garden, if so i love the way they interact and build. How do you keep them indoors?

I imagined they like building where there's wind, for instance on branches that are swaying, or minor wind tunnels that is likely to be a major path for flying insects, so keeping them indoors must be hard, what type of cage do you keep them in?

Do you also use something to control the humidity, or am I just being stupid and overthinking this?

 

[Andee]

I can share with you how I keep my orb weavers, I have two who are doing great, I have lost one, but it was an older male from the wild.

 

[Andee]

You are definitely over thinking XD trust me it's easy to do. Gimme a second to get some pictures uploaded.

 

[Andee]

So this is a super tiny enclosure that I had for one of my younger cross weavers when it was a juvenile. It used the silk plants to create it's webbing. Humidity was kept where it needed to be by misting once a day when it dried out, and providing less airflow than I usually did.

So for an agriope sp. or any larger orb weaver, do a taller like 25 gallon aquarium likely. Get wooden sticks (either buy them or collected and pastuerize them), and use hot glue to keep them in place. Use fake silk plants or real if you want a challenge for cleaning, and hot glue again, provide silk plants on the bottom that make it easy for the little one to traverse the bottom just in case of falling. Most orb weaver do not need light from what I know (as far as uvb not sure about temps etc). They do best with smaller more consistent meals that are easier to take down than large but appropriate sized meals. I feed my orb weavers about 3 hydei every other day.

 

[arachnoherp]

nephila i have kept in those popup butterfly habitats and are a lot easier to care for and feed then the cross web(argiope) species who when small would build webs in the popup butterfly enclosure but once matured refused to build webs while nephila had no problems altering its webs based on the ammount of space it had. if you go the route of argiope species they will need relaively large enclosures to build webs in.

 

[1Lord Of Ants1]

Another thing to keep in mind is that orb weavers tend to be highly seasonal. Your average species often matures and dies in 8 months, perhaps a year in certain cases.

 

[Ungoliant]

The webbing (from reading wiki) is not supposed to be sticky, does that mean they just pick the prey up and drag them back to a corner rather than wrap them up and play with the food in full display?

When Kukulcania spin silk, it comes out as thousands of fine strands, which they fray with their hind legs. This makes the silk mechanically sticky (like velcro), even though there is no glue. It's extremely effective (some of the stickiest silk I've ever handled) but labor-intensive to produce.

When Kuks capture prey, they typically bite and wrap. If the prey is struggling too vigorously, they might then back off a bit to wait for the venom to take effect. Once the prey is under control and wrapped, they tend to drag it into their retreats. (If it's smaller and weaker, they may drag it right away.)

These spiders are incredibly long lived and easy to keep. I would highly recommend them.