Feeding the Dead (T) to the Alive (T's)....?

[abstract]

I was thinking about doing this when my Versicolor died, but didn't think it was appropriate.

Does anyone feed their dead spiders to the alive ones? I figure there is a lot of nutrition to be had from a recently passed spider corpse, and as spiders are naturally cannibals anyway - it almost seems like a natural thing! Plus, the corpse would just go into the trash or ground anyway (barring preserving).

One concern though, if it is a strange death, there is probably a possibility of infecting whatever T the body is fed to. However, a failed molt etc. might justify it?

What are your thoughts?

 

[deifiler]

Feed the ones that are still alive and in a bad way... i.e. the ones who have failed the moult. Use a bigger spider to euthanise them in a sense.

i wouldn't advise feeding a dead one to them though... The spider may of had mites or something. Better safe than sorry anyway.

 

[RugbyDave]

not caring about other people who are going to beat me down for this one:

i've got a couple males who are on their way out. They've been bred around, and have passed their legacy on. Some of them havent bred, but they're just too old. Sure, i could possibly get a breeding out of 2 of these guys, but they just won't do it. They're really old.

So i've tried for a breeding once more, but instead of taking them out of the females cage, i've just left them in.

i haven't fed a dead T, though.

good luck man!
peace
dave

 

[Jeff_C]

Dave,


Why would you be beat down for this? Isn't this one of the expect ways that a male spider would die in nature? I know it has been said (written?) that they don't get eaten by the female as an automatic but it does happen...doesn't it?

I dont think this is any worse than allowing slings to remain together in bunches until you have the most fit (and fattest) sling remaining. It would happen in nature.

Jeff


Of course if I actually had a female A avic then maybe I could be making this same decision for myself (on behalf of my mature male A avic)...hint hint.

 

[skinheaddave]

We currently have a near-dead pokie male living with pokie female, a near-dead B.vagans male living with a B.vagans female and will soon have a near-dead A.avic living with a female. After they've been passed around, I tend to pick the female that either needs that last chance at another mating or a good meal.

I've also fed a dead scorpion to a centipede. On the other hand, my male Usumbara died of unknown causes before I could mate him. He is NOT being fed to anything, lest what killled him can be passed on.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[MizM]

Dave, I would MUCH prefer that my old, tired b. vagans male goes out with a bang (I'm pretty sure there is a pun there!) than die a slow, PERHAPS painful (we don't know) death!

 

[caligulathegod]

I'll respond here instead of where this started from. My baby blondi died after his molt so I decided to feed the body to my Zebra but she's decided not to eat. I might not have caught the death in time. She checked it out but didn't find it appetizing, I guess. First time I've ever done it. Hope I don't get too many opportunities in the future.

 

[MizM]

Well, I hope we ALL don't have too many opportunities to do this!

 

[Midwest Art]

Oppsss...

Oppsss...

Here's a pic of my Red Island Birdeater: Phormictopus atrichomatus munching on an old and tired Brachy smithi. She's shed twice since then and is much larger.

Bon appetit

Art

 

[Malhavoc's]

Nice pix!

 

[Immortal_sin]

well, as long as we are sharing pics....

here is one, I hope it results in many tiny OBTs!

 

[Malhavoc's]

heehee

as I stated in another thread "luv's sweet but a fat juicy male is sweeter *sees the female clean her fangs glaring at the male hidding in the corner*" after sex munchies anyone?

 

[MrT]

I've got the same thing goin on with my male and female A. avics.
The male won't come out alive. Although I think he'll die of old age, not as the main course of her dinner..

Ernie

 

[Valael]

Originally posted by jcohen9999
Why would you be beat down for this?

Well, in the past, some people kind of freaked out when someone posted a picture of a centipede eatting a spider. I can't remember exactly, but they said it was cruel or something.


I figure if it's on it's way out, why put it to use? If you're able to breed it, let it breed/live with female. If you can't breed it, might as well use it as a large meal.



Better than just throwing it away. Unless you preserve them in alcohol.........or go all out with a funeral ;P

 

[abstract]

one of these things is not like the other...

Midwest -

I was curious as to why you put the Smithi in with the Red Island Birdeater....had it just already had it's last leg? I see that everyone else is for this idea, but mostly just for breeding purposes.

Has anyone else used this as a method of euthenasia, like deifiler has suggested and Midwest Art seems to have done?

 

[Nixy]

I know a while back that someone fed a matured male that didn't make it through a postulimate molt to a blondi and posted pictures. You might have to search for it, I don't remember the thread name but it was a while back.

I have an A.Avic male in with one of my females. he's still working on her, through Very Very slowly and has a hard time moving around. I know he won't come out of there alive.

Our B. Emilia I let in for continueing shots at our female but am working to keep him safe as I would like to preserve his body is acrylic. He is a Gorgeous male.

Our E. Camp will be protected and preserved as well if Dave sends me his female. (Pokes Dave and grins) And will as well be acryliced. If he is bred, he's bred, if not, then well he will die of old age with a belly full of fat crickets and being spoiled as much as a bug can be spoiled.

If of course the twins don't pounce on me and make me give them a funeral. But all and all my five years old have a good grasp on death and a good grasp on the food chain and how things like that work for their age.

I see nothing wrong in spider to spider feeding, especialy if it's a male close to his term and it's to help ensure the female has the resources needed to make, keep and not eat a sack. My female Huriana ate her male. He was slowing down anyway.
Unfortunetly I was mistold her molt times and she molted out since.
So I'm looking for another male for her.
I Hate to see her go unbreed as she is a Gorgeous Gorgeous lady.

 

[greensleeves]

Originally posted by Nixy
Our E. Camp will be protected and preserved as well if Dave sends me his female. (Pokes Dave and grins) And will as well be acryliced. If he is bred, he's bred, if not, then well he will die of old age with a belly full of fat crickets and being spoiled as much as a bug can be spoiled.

Sorry to cut in here, and I'm not being at all facetious when I say that reading the above paragraph brought tears to my eyes. The sentiment is just beautiful.

It gives me hope for the human race that we can feel such love for even invertebrates - in some cases, like skadiwolf, overcoming our deep-seated fears.

I truly believe there is a Creator somewhere that loves all of Creation, from the tiniest microbe all the way up to the blue whale, and that by learning to love and appreciate misunderstood creatures, we are bringing humanity closer to its ultimate expression of beauty.

*hugs all around*

Greensleeves

 

[Code Monkey]

I've never done it, but I figure that's more to do with not thinking of the idea so much as any qualms about it. The most I've ever done for a dead invert is chuck it in the trash or give it away to someone who wanted to try something with it (e.g. acryllic paper weight). Making a meal out of it for other inverts seems like a pretty logical thing to do with it if there was someone around to eat it whether for breeding or just plain old feeding.

 

[RugbyDave]

Originally posted by greensleeves

I truly believe there is a Creator somewhere that loves all of Creation, from the tiniest microbe all the way up to the blue whale, and that by learning to love and appreciate misunderstood creatures, we are bringing humanity closer to its ultimate expression of beauty.

there's definitley not a "creator" or "god" in my book, but it doesn't mean i don't love anything just as much

I only send out my Ts to the group of people who are on the same level as me. Which is why i'll be sending one of my fat females to you nixy Call me stupid, but i just don't feel comfortable sending a P.cancerides to a 16 year old (or hell, 36 year old for that matter) i've never met. Or maybe its just foresight ;P

and a nice big avic is on its way to Long Island very soon (nudge nudge).

and abstract, this one male i have, thats on his last leg, isn't going to be bred. He's just going to be fed.

peace all
dave

 

[Nixy]

(Hugs back)
Greensleeves. I would Love to see the twins hip deep in spiderlings. But Hugo. The E.Camp was a gift to them from someone Very special. So he is a very special big old buggy. The twins Do Love their spiders, take exmplary care of them and it breaks their hearts to lose one. We try to give them the best life possable and to me breeding takes a back seat in some cases. I don't want to see him " wasted" and not bred. Every male should have a shot at extending himself through his bloodline. But I won't just toss him in and forget him. The twins adore him.

Our little male avic is. Well he wasn't kept in the best conditon before we got him. So I'm just glad he can totter enough To breed and Hopefuly a nice sack full of eggs will be the result of his efforts. And Those will be kept like he wasn't before. It took a while to nurse him to be strong enough to go as far as he did. I got him in a Tiny deli cup at a show stuffed in dry ceder hamster bedding crammed in so tight he could hardly move and half stuck in his maturing molt. He looks like hell. But is a tough little bug that's chugging right along after Dazzle The female avic.

He's got his shot and will go out as a "poud" spider male, despite not having "feet" on four legs and having two legs bent oddly from the bad molt that he had.