Colonies???

green_bottle_04

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 4, 2006
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437
ok...im not one to house mulitple spiders...(with the exception of my A. Avics. 1 male and 1 female in a BIG tank) ...but i was told the other day that Poecilotheria Sp. can be housed in multiples and that they will CLOLONIZE?! provided they are well fed..anyone else heard of this?
 

Stylopidae

Arachnoking
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Joined
Jul 7, 2005
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3,203
This *can* be true (avicularia, pternochilus, poecielotheria holothele...there may be a few genera I missed), however you will eventually lose specimens due to cannibalism no matter what you do.

Ecperiments with communal setups only make sense if and only if you breed your own spiders. No sense dropping $500 on 5 adult P. regalis, only to end up with two very fat specimens.

I plan on experimenting with this when I start breeding.
 

green_bottle_04

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 4, 2006
Messages
437
This *can* be true (avicularia, pternochilus, poecielotheria holothele...there may be a few genera I missed), however you will eventually lose specimens due to cannibalism no matter what you do.

Ecperiments with communal setups only make sense if and only if you breed your own spiders. No sense dropping $500 on 5 adult P. regalis, only to end up with two very fat specimens.

I plan on experimenting with this when I start breeding.
i agree with you that it only makes sense if you are going to breed them. some other enthusiasts as well as myself, are trying to develop a miniature, self-sustainging eco system. live plants, breeding insects and a colony of indian ornamentals. we shall see if it works. :D
 

Mina

Arachnoking
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Oct 4, 2005
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2,136
Yes, I've heard of people keeping pokies and avics in groups. It can supposedly be done. I just don't see how it can be sucessful in the long run. As they mature, I can see a lot of problems. I imagine they could probably live together for a while as slings to juvies, but I don't think adults could.
 

Code Monkey

Arachnoemperor
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Jul 22, 2002
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3,783
Yes, I've heard of people keeping pokies and avics in groups. It can supposedly be done. I just don't see how it can be sucessful in the long run. As they mature, I can see a lot of problems. I imagine they could probably live together for a while as slings to juvies, but I don't think adults could.
It depends on how you define success. If your goal is to have a large enclosure with multiple harborage possibilities, excess food, and you are completely prepared and willing to accept some casualties, there is no reason why these sorts of multiple spider enclosures can't be called successes. Now, if your goal is to put 3 A. avicularia in a 10 gallon aquarium and have 3 A. avicularia a year from now, good luck with that ;)
 

Varden

Arachnodemon
Old Timer
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May 22, 2005
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704
I have a P. rufilata male that has co-habitated with my big female since August. It didn't start out as an experiment. I tried to pull him out several times, but the minute I touch the container to remove him, he dashes for the safety of the female's burrow. Since I didn't want to disturb what I hoped would be a gravid female, I left him in there figuring he'd be munched. Eventually.

Now it's five months later, and my female molted lying next to him in her flowerpot hide about two weeks ago. I'm kinda curious to see for just how long she'll tolerate him. He's an old male, no longer spinning spermwebs, but she doesn't seem to mind his being there at all. Eventually, I expect to find his remains in or near the waterdish, but who knows. He might actually die of old age at this point.
 
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