Difference between egg nest and molting nest

[evree]

How do you tell the difference between a web house that’s meant for eggs and one that’s meant for molting or one that’s just for them to sleep in?
I have a Phidippus Audax that’s wild caught. I named her Max. I’ve been doing tons of research so that I can properly care for her and I even identified her and figured out she’s female.
However I can’t find enough information to determine if she’s gonna molt or if she’s getting ready to lay eggs. Or if she just has a fancy new house.
The one Max has built has an opening on each side and it’s very thick. The very first little house she built was only two layers and so so much smaller.
I’m worried about giving her a fly because if she is molting and won’t eat it, it could mess up her nest but if she is laying eggs then she’ll need to be fed.
Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[CRX]

I would caution against using flies or any wild caught prey. I would reccomend getting some small crickets as soon as possible, what I do is I pinch one leg off the crickets, this makes them easier for the spider to catch and they can't kick as much. It's just not safe to feed wildcaught prey they can have pesticides and parasites. I also live in Kentucky! And I have two female P audaxs. They eat pinhead crickets just fine.

As to the web thing, all you can really do is wait and see. It does look pretty thick to me, but it doesn't really matter. If she laid eggs or is molting, she has to be left alone either way.

edit: also, in the pic, is that an open lid? Did she build her hammock right under the lid? That isn't optimal, you're going to be disturbing the web anytime the lid opens. What we usually do for this is we get an enclosure with a side opening, so we don't have to mess with the top, or provide plenty of cover in the enclosure below the lid so they aren't tempted to web up right under it.

 

[evree]

I would caution against using flies or any wild caught prey. I would reccomend getting some small crickets as soon as possible, what I do is I pinch one leg off the crickets, this makes them easier for the spider to catch and they can't kick as much. It's just not safe to feed wildcaught prey they can have pesticides and parasites. I also live in Kentucky! And I have two female P audaxs. They eat pinhead crickets just fine.

As to the web thing, all you can really do is wait and see. It does look pretty thick to me, but it doesn't really matter. If she laid eggs or is molting, she has to be left alone either way.

edit: also, in the pic, is that an open lid? Did she build her hammock right under the lid? That isn't optimal, you're going to be disturbing the web anytime the lid opens. What we usually do for this is we get an enclosure with a side opening, so we don't have to mess with the top, or provide plenty of cover in the enclosure below the lid so they aren't tempted to web up right under it.

Thank you for the information ^_^ I’ll wait to see what happens before I try and feed her again. She’s in a little glass terrarium and it has an opening on the middle top but her web is on the corner. The door is pretty small. She’s being taken care of pretty good. I found her trapped in the car and starving so she has it made now lol.

 

[egyptiancrow]

you can only know from looking and seeing if shes mature or seeing eggs. shine your flashlight through the web and look for a circular pile inside.

but honestly, audax can make very thick molt sacs, that look like egg nests. if shes a big girl, shes probably not going to molt anymore. and yes, captive bred prey is important. actually, leaving something harmless like a fly is okay. only crickets and mealworms and other creatures with chewing mandibles really can harm a spider. most feeder flies are safe as well as their maggots.

 

[Smotzer]

Like suggested you should be able to tell in time if there’s been an egg sack or not laid with a flashlight.

also captive bred flies are totally fine to use a feeders in addition to any of the other spider feeders.