Ever have a "stealth" molt?

[ladyratri]

For the first time in my short 20 months of T keeping I am officially 100% baffled...my Avic webbed off a space behind its bark like maybe it was considering molting, and was looking plump and scruffy enough. Disappeared on and off for a bit, but never really... Long enough? Didn't see any of the usual stretching? Expected it to be still fasting, but walked in the other day to ....this:


I swear that T was not that big a month ago or I would not have been waiting for one more molt to rehouse it! But the fangs are black, it happily grabbed a cricket, and it doesn't look post-molt thin?

To be fair that's the smaller dimension of the enclosure, but...Luckily I have the next enclosure for it and some reasonable bark and stuff kicking around. Time to get that set up ASAP it looks like .

I'm just gonna tell myself it hadn't really sprawled out since the last molt...

 

[Tentacle Toast]

I've had that happen, & also with avics, LoL. But they surprised me with a sudden molt, I didn't think it was coming, & then they just looked bigger (noticed a correlation with barometric pressure drops, but that's another thread)...& several would do it at the same time (making me think it was influenced by environmental factors, but I digress). She might've gotten changed real quick behind the curtains, & didn't come out until she was at her best...

 

[viper69]

Interesting

 

[NMTs]

I had a sorta similar experience with H. formusus recently. She'd been in her burrow, fasting, clearly in premolt for several weeks. I came home about 3 weeks ago to find an exuvia stuffed in the corner and her sitting at the mouth of her burrow looking nice. I gave her a week, fed her, and all was well. Next time I went to feed her this past weekend, I dropped in a roach, and then looked to see her come out for it and saw... another exuvia in her burrow?! And she was looking bigger and definitely recently molted with brighter colors, etc.. How had she molted twice in 3 weeks? I was totally blown away, but now I know what really happened - she'd been in her burrow in premolt and cleaned out an old molt about 3 weeks ago in preparation for the upcoming molt, and I just happened to catch her right after she'd done that, so I thought she had molted when she really hadn't. She ate that one time, then went back in for the next couple weeks and actually molted... At least that's what I think happened, LOL!

 

[gabrieldezzi]

For the first time in my short 20 months of T keeping I am officially 100% baffled...my Avic webbed off a space behind its bark like maybe it was considering molting, and was looking plump and scruffy enough. Disappeared on and off for a bit, but never really... Long enough? Didn't see any of the usual stretching? Expected it to be still fasting, but walked in the other day to ....this:
View attachment 458331

I swear that T was not that big a month ago or I would not have been waiting for one more molt to rehouse it! But the fangs are black, it happily grabbed a cricket, and it doesn't look post-molt thin?

To be fair that's the smaller dimension of the enclosure, but...Luckily I have the next enclosure for it and some reasonable bark and stuff kicking around. Time to get that set up ASAP it looks like .

I'm just gonna tell myself it hadn't really sprawled out since the last molt...

Avicularia's are always full of surprises. The first time mine was in pre-molt she showed virtually no signs. She wasn't lethargic, and even ate 2 days before, but just got really dark. Suddenly after getting home from work one day there was an extra pair of legs in her web tunnel and her toes were extra vibrant. I currently suspect she's in pre-molt again, because she's very dark, has a huge abdomen, and even has been reclusive (very unusual for her!) I've never had this sort of "phantom molt" behavior in any of my other T's so I guess it's just an avic. thing..?

Below is a picture of my girl yesterday.

 

[l4nsky]

I have quite a few obligate fossorials...... So, yes lol.

 

[kingshockey]

yes my vagans pulled that on me before kept eating to the week it molted. i dropped a pre killed feeder by it watched it snatch it up so i walked away only to come back to see it flipped starting to molt with the dead feeder next to it i have a pic of it posted on here some where. not quite a stealth molt more like it pulled a fast one on me

 

[Tentacle Toast]

Avics are an absolute wild card, I just love em'... wholly unpredictable, I don't care how long you've been doing it, these guys will surprise you.

What's the weather been like where you are, out of curiosity?

 

[l4nsky]

What's the weather been like where you are, out of curiosity?

https://arachnoboards.com/threads/who-molted-today.210472/post-3370469

 

[ladyratri]

Avics are an absolute wild card, I just love em'... wholly unpredictable, I don't care how long you've been doing it, these guys will surprise you.

What's the weather been like where you are, out of curiosity?

It's New England. Our running gag is, "Don't like the weather? Just wait a minute, it'll change."

 

[aprilmayjunebugs]

My favorite kind. I stress all day when one of my terrestrials flips over, the arboreals are like, "Surprise! When's lunch?" and I'm like, next week kid, you'll live.

 

[Tentacle Toast]

https://arachnoboards.com/threads/who-molted-today.210472/post-3370469

I made a thread about this a couple years ago, but & it seemed controversial. Of course I'm going by one of those wall mounted maritime units, not charted like yours is (awesome telemetry, by the way), & the consensus was I was a lunatic, at least that's what I remember of it, LoL.
Wanted to revisit it with all of this charted data, still might, but.... it's absolutely hilarious how unpredictable these things are, LoL

 

[Tentacle Toast]

It's New England. Our running gag is, "Don't like the weather? Just wait a minute, it'll change."

Hahahaha, WNY here, I know that feel. That's alright though, as you'll get the most interesting little quarks out of your Advice, LoL. I don't care what anyone says, these guys are heavily influenced by the weather..

 

[l4nsky]

I made a thread about this a couple years ago, but & it seemed controversial. Of course I'm going by one of those wall mounted maritime units, not charted like yours is (awesome telemetry, by the way), & the consensus was I was a lunatic, at least that's what I remember of it, LoL.
Wanted to revisit it with all of this charted data, still might, but.... it's absolutely hilarious how unpredictable these things are, LoL

IMHO, weather patterns are a trigger only if all other prerequisites are met (ie the tarantula has the food it needs to grow or the time required to internally develop). It's all a balancing act.

 

[Tentacle Toast]

IMHO, weather patterns are a trigger only if all other prerequisites are met (ie the tarantula has the food it needs to grow or the time required to internally develop). It's all a balancing act.

Yeah, & it's those variables that make it VERY difficult to "prove" for the hobbyist; YOU know, & I know, & even the "UHHH AKTYUWALLY" crowd knows, but since it can't be "proven" we're just a bunch of mid-witted amateurs, LoL

That's alright; I was one of those early amateurs keeping R auriculatus that documented vocalization postnSiepp/Henkel's initial Natural History...LoL
I'm happy to watch it unfold here, again.
... always the new world's, right?

 

[l4nsky]

Yeah, & it's those variables that make it VERY difficult to "prove" for the hobbyist;

Ehh, not really difficult so much as time intensive. One would need detailed husbandry records..... and possibly a sensor suite with some amazing telemetry .

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

For the first time in my short 20 months of T keeping I am officially 100% baffled...my Avic webbed off a space behind its bark like maybe it was considering molting, and was looking plump and scruffy enough. Disappeared on and off for a bit, but never really... Long enough? Didn't see any of the usual stretching? Expected it to be still fasting, but walked in the other day to ....this:
View attachment 458331

I swear that T was not that big a month ago or I would not have been waiting for one more molt to rehouse it! But the fangs are black, it happily grabbed a cricket, and it doesn't look post-molt thin?

To be fair that's the smaller dimension of the enclosure, but...Luckily I have the next enclosure for it and some reasonable bark and stuff kicking around. Time to get that set up ASAP it looks like .

I'm just gonna tell myself it hadn't really sprawled out since the last molt...

I had a curly hair molt just a week or two after eating no dark abdomen or anything . But usually they don’t just sneak molt. Yours has a web to hide behind.

 

[ladyratri]

I *think* its butt is still scruffy-bald in the middle though, so...I think it's just been cleverly hiding its true size for like...months?

 

[jbooth]

Yeah fossorials.. My C. lividus for example, hasn't ever tossed a molt out, never seen one lol. Without seeing the abdomen I can't ever tell if it molted.

 

[Arachnophobphile]

Oh yeah....without a doubt I have one T that I never witnessed molting. Matter of fact I never even seen the molt afterwards.

My Pseudhapalopus sp blue that has adopted being 100% fossorial. I've had it since 2/16/2020. Never seen it molted and it never kicked it's molt out of it's underground labyrinth.

It comes out only at night and that is very seldom.