I've had this experience several times, and I agree: I think they are "sleeping".
Do tarantulas sleep?
- Thread starter iluvcreepystuff
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You are so right . My seemani is "sleeping" and when I lightly touch her with my tongs , she doesnt do anything . Maybe a few more taps will get her going ? Yup . it sure does . She then turns around , bites the tongs , runs up the wall of her KK , and I have to catch her . Meanest t I have ever owned by far . So yes , im assuming they have a resting point , but dont "sleep" like us .
On the other hand, maybe she gave up on trying to "be still" and got defensive.
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YAY i started a controversy! lol
Alot of my t's will be in that "sleeping" stage when i first touch them, i will give a tap to a leg and the dont do much more then flinch, i give another tap to the leg and its like when you scream at a sleeping cat lol.
Alot of my t's will be in that "sleeping" stage when i first touch them, i will give a tap to a leg and the dont do much more then flinch, i give another tap to the leg and its like when you scream at a sleeping cat lol.
this made me chuckle..
i just went in and checked on my spiders and my P. Audax was in its web.. when i came close he came out... looked at me for a bit... then turned around.. patted his web down.. spun in a circle (like a dog) and curled up in his lil tube web again.. lol
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That is what she does . I am just giving a example of how ts react .
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A scientific look this maybe?
i would have to say that your T not being startled would prove in a way that it is not "sleeping". Maybe she is aware of you "passing" through. a second nudge tells her instinct ok this isnt a accidental brush i better run. of course this is a very crude unscientific theory. I think there may be times when there metabolism lays dormant. When we sleep our metabolism slows. A definition of "sleep" needs to be brought up here. when you say do they "sleep" do we mean rest. or do we mean unconsious or unresponsive to physical contact. do we mean sleep as in the recouperation and restoration of chemicals in their "brain" This is an excellent question to ask, yet very broad.
i would have to say that your T not being startled would prove in a way that it is not "sleeping". Maybe she is aware of you "passing" through. a second nudge tells her instinct ok this isnt a accidental brush i better run. of course this is a very crude unscientific theory. I think there may be times when there metabolism lays dormant. When we sleep our metabolism slows. A definition of "sleep" needs to be brought up here. when you say do they "sleep" do we mean rest. or do we mean unconsious or unresponsive to physical contact. do we mean sleep as in the recouperation and restoration of chemicals in their "brain" This is an excellent question to ask, yet very broad.
–verb (used without object)
1. to take the rest afforded by a suspension of voluntary bodily functions and the natural suspension, complete or partial, of consciousness; cease being awake.
2. Botany . to assume, esp. at night, a state similar to the sleep of animals, marked by closing of petals, leaves, etc.
3. to be dormant, quiescent, or inactive, as faculties.
4. to be careless or unalert; allow one's alertness, vigilance, or attentiveness to lie dormant: While England slept, Germany prepared for war.
5. to lie in death: They are sleeping in their tombs.
-Webster's definition
1. to take the rest afforded by a suspension of voluntary bodily functions and the natural suspension, complete or partial, of consciousness; cease being awake.
2. Botany . to assume, esp. at night, a state similar to the sleep of animals, marked by closing of petals, leaves, etc.
3. to be dormant, quiescent, or inactive, as faculties.
4. to be careless or unalert; allow one's alertness, vigilance, or attentiveness to lie dormant: While England slept, Germany prepared for war.
5. to lie in death: They are sleeping in their tombs.
-Webster's definition
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All living things sleep, I like watching goldfish sleep. 
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I think most of you are falling into that easy to do habit of anthropomorphizing tarantulas. When you are touching your tarantulas leg, why would you think it was asleep if it jumps on the second or third one? The way I see it, it is pure instinct..... Instinct : Ooooh something touched me! I'll be very still and see if it goes away..... Ooops! It's still there, I'm getting the heck out of here! I think it is safe to say that when they aren't moving, they are at rest. That does not equate to sleep in the human/ mammal/ fly sense of the word. Tarantulas are also more primitive species, which puts them even farther from what humans would call sleep. DrAce stated is quite nicely here.
and fish do not 'sleep' they rest.
and fish do not 'sleep' they rest.
That's not true. It has been shown that fish do actually sleep.
PhobeToPhile
Arachnoknight
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And just to give an example, I'd like to point out that nurse sharks are quite famous for it.
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I found this interesting bit of info on spiders in general. Im not sure if it crosses over to tarantulas but it is better then any other info ive found:
http://australianmuseum.net.au/Spider-facts
here is the part that I found helpful:
It really depends on how you define 'sleep'. All animals have some sort of 'circadian' rhythm - a daily activity/inactivity pattern. Some are active during the day - diurnal - others are active at night time - nocturnal/crepuscular. The periods of inactivity are characterised by withdrawal (to a shelter perhaps) and a drop in metabolic rate.
This applies to spiders as well, although no studies have been done to measure the period of time spent in such a state or at what times different species do it. It seems that spiders with good eyesight that rely on vision to capture prey may tend to be more active in daylight hours, whereas others that rely on snares/webs could be active at other times, but this is not necessarily the case for all species.
In cold climates, spiders 'overwinter', which means that they have a kind of hibernation period. Overwintering involves a drop in metabolic rate, where the spiders bring their legs into their body and remain huddled in a shelter during the coldest months of the year.
This ability to shut down for a long period of time indicates that they might be able to do it for shorter periods in their everyday cycle, which could be seen as a form of sleep or rest.
Information from: Foelix, R.F. 1996. Biology of Spiders. Oxford Thieme and the Arachnology section, Australian Museum
http://australianmuseum.net.au/Spider-facts
here is the part that I found helpful:
It really depends on how you define 'sleep'. All animals have some sort of 'circadian' rhythm - a daily activity/inactivity pattern. Some are active during the day - diurnal - others are active at night time - nocturnal/crepuscular. The periods of inactivity are characterised by withdrawal (to a shelter perhaps) and a drop in metabolic rate.
This applies to spiders as well, although no studies have been done to measure the period of time spent in such a state or at what times different species do it. It seems that spiders with good eyesight that rely on vision to capture prey may tend to be more active in daylight hours, whereas others that rely on snares/webs could be active at other times, but this is not necessarily the case for all species.
In cold climates, spiders 'overwinter', which means that they have a kind of hibernation period. Overwintering involves a drop in metabolic rate, where the spiders bring their legs into their body and remain huddled in a shelter during the coldest months of the year.
This ability to shut down for a long period of time indicates that they might be able to do it for shorter periods in their everyday cycle, which could be seen as a form of sleep or rest.
Information from: Foelix, R.F. 1996. Biology of Spiders. Oxford Thieme and the Arachnology section, Australian Museum
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If a tarantula was sleeping how would you know? they cant shut their eyes, and dont have to lay down to sleep cows and birds are some examples of this, so as far as i can tell when their not moving their sleeping and when they feel vibrations maybe they wake up. Just saying there isnt a way to tell if its asleep or not.
>>>>>:worship:<<<<<I know several, but I wont name names
My G. pulchra does sleep, she has long periods where her legs curl under partially (not a death curl) this is where she is so relaxed that the extensor muscles in her legs are so relaxed they do not remain fully extended. This is her sleep period IMO.
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If fruit flies can, perhaps tarantulas and other spiders do too. It would be impossible to tell if they're sleeping though without eye lids unless there's equipment we can use to detect it.
I've watched my fish sleep before. Yes their eyes are open, but when they swim it's more lazy and they are even easier to spook in this state. It's like they aren't all there.
Gobies and oscars are the few fish I've noticed in my tanks that actually find a place to hide. There were several times I thought my oscar had died or was ill in the middle of the night because he'd be leaning against a rock on his side. I felt bad for waking him.
I've watched my fish sleep before. Yes their eyes are open, but when they swim it's more lazy and they are even easier to spook in this state. It's like they aren't all there.
Gobies and oscars are the few fish I've noticed in my tanks that actually find a place to hide. There were several times I thought my oscar had died or was ill in the middle of the night because he'd be leaning against a rock on his side. I felt bad for waking him.
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Probably dream about being bigger than us, pinch grabbing us under our pits and showing us on camera asking "boy or girl?" and they are jealous that we get cupcakes so they probably dream about that, too. ;P
groovyspider
Arachnoknight
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like chuck norris