Hello everybody,
I just had my first experience of mating my tarantulas! Heart rate still elevated.
Anybody up for evaluating how I did and how it went as these things go?
My first ever Tarantula Men-an-Tol, who is a female B Vagans, moulted on the 30th of July. Once she was ready to eat again stuffed her with crickets until today she didn't want any more.
Last week I put a separate tank inside hers, containing Mature Male Vagans Robbie Jones (both named after songs by the Levellers), who had mated before, unlike the female. I then moved the heat mat Men-an-Tol clings to permanently (I live in Scotland, so it's a bit cool) to where the dividing wall was, and today found both of them on opposite sides of the plastic.
So, I took off the lid of the big tank, and then took off the lid of the little one, so they had complete freedom. Then I quietly put on the Levellers in the background, dimmed the lights and sat down to watch. Nothing happened for the first half an hour. Then the male began drumming, doing his press-ups and satrting feeling his way around the top of the tank, three times trying to get up and over on the wrong side, so I gently guided him back in, and then put some nylon over the big tank to prevent him doing that. Still left a good two inches of gap between the top of the smaller tank and the nylon above, and sure enough he crawled straight over and started drumming on Men-an-Tol's legs. She started drumming back onto his, and both of them got down to the soil, where a little struggle seemed to ensue. I left them to it, as I read this is kind of how it goes.
He hooked her and lifted her up to the tune of Beautiful Day (what timing). Half the time they were both up in the air vertically, but the other half she was doubled over backwards and he was pretty much horizontal, seemingly boxing into her abdomen, which I imagine was trying to make an insertion.
Eventually he backed off, letting go with one hook first, backing off some more, letting go with the other one and then very gently backing off towards his own cage. She did not chase him, but seemed to make sure he was leaving. He walked up the dividing wall backwards -all going very well- when he hit the netting above, stuck to that and then proceeded to walk upside down to the far corner of her tank rather than going into his own. I lifted up the nylon gently, and scooped him up in the wee plastic tub I had on hand to protect him should she had gone for him.
Put him back in his tank and fed both of them a cricket. She went for hers instantly, and he ran away from his. Cricket ran straight into the water dish, so won't be annoying him for the moment. Replaced both tank lids and contemplated having a drink to celebrate.
What do the more experienced of you think?
I just had my first experience of mating my tarantulas! Heart rate still elevated.
Anybody up for evaluating how I did and how it went as these things go?
My first ever Tarantula Men-an-Tol, who is a female B Vagans, moulted on the 30th of July. Once she was ready to eat again stuffed her with crickets until today she didn't want any more.
Last week I put a separate tank inside hers, containing Mature Male Vagans Robbie Jones (both named after songs by the Levellers), who had mated before, unlike the female. I then moved the heat mat Men-an-Tol clings to permanently (I live in Scotland, so it's a bit cool) to where the dividing wall was, and today found both of them on opposite sides of the plastic.
So, I took off the lid of the big tank, and then took off the lid of the little one, so they had complete freedom. Then I quietly put on the Levellers in the background, dimmed the lights and sat down to watch. Nothing happened for the first half an hour. Then the male began drumming, doing his press-ups and satrting feeling his way around the top of the tank, three times trying to get up and over on the wrong side, so I gently guided him back in, and then put some nylon over the big tank to prevent him doing that. Still left a good two inches of gap between the top of the smaller tank and the nylon above, and sure enough he crawled straight over and started drumming on Men-an-Tol's legs. She started drumming back onto his, and both of them got down to the soil, where a little struggle seemed to ensue. I left them to it, as I read this is kind of how it goes.
He hooked her and lifted her up to the tune of Beautiful Day (what timing). Half the time they were both up in the air vertically, but the other half she was doubled over backwards and he was pretty much horizontal, seemingly boxing into her abdomen, which I imagine was trying to make an insertion.
Eventually he backed off, letting go with one hook first, backing off some more, letting go with the other one and then very gently backing off towards his own cage. She did not chase him, but seemed to make sure he was leaving. He walked up the dividing wall backwards -all going very well- when he hit the netting above, stuck to that and then proceeded to walk upside down to the far corner of her tank rather than going into his own. I lifted up the nylon gently, and scooped him up in the wee plastic tub I had on hand to protect him should she had gone for him.
Put him back in his tank and fed both of them a cricket. She went for hers instantly, and he ran away from his. Cricket ran straight into the water dish, so won't be annoying him for the moment. Replaced both tank lids and contemplated having a drink to celebrate.
What do the more experienced of you think?
. i also noticed that the females tend to get more agressive towards the males with each mating. if he got some good insertions, three matings should be more than enough for her to built a sac if she decides to do so. remember that brachys are more likely to make a sac if you give them a cooling period, and hope.