Gorgyrella inermis - don't hunting

[eagle-eagle]

Hi, I'm new here. I'm from Poland so sory for my weak english... OK.. About two months ago I've bought my red trapdoor spider. It is about 5cm witch legs. He didn't make a hole, and tunnel. Spider was sitting in corner of terra and sometimes attacked some cricket. I gave him 15cm of coconut fibre. Humidity is about 85%. About month ago I've made him a hole and I've dropped him there. Next day I saw that he has made a 'trap'. It could be great but.. now he don't hunting! One day I saw him when he was walking across terra and stay in corner for two days - then he got back to the hole. Now when I open the trap and drop him a food - he hunt and eat, but he doesn't hunt when I drop living food to terra. Sometimes when I try to look under the 'trap' he catch the lid from underside... Please tell me what I have to do? I'll be grateful when he starts hunting...

 

[P. Novak]

Well trapdoors don't really hunt. THey sit in their burrow and wait for the prey item to walk by and then snatch it. Just leave it alone for awhile and then throw some circkets or whatever you use as prey items in there and I'm sure it'll eat it. It won't always eat in front of you.

P.S. Welcome to the boards!

 

[Bayushi]

we have a red trapdoor spider, who prefers to be fed like yours does. if you don't drop the food into it's burrow, it will start hunting. might take a week or so, but it'll eventually get hungry enough to catch it's own meals

 

[eagle-eagle]

I was worried about him because he haven't eat for more than a month so today I've dropped him a cricket to the hole and he catch him. Severely times I left him live cricket - he was walking across the terra 3-4 days and trapdoor didn't hunt him... How long could this spider live without food?

 

[cacoseraph]

I was worried about him because he haven't eat for more than a month so today I've dropped him a cricket to the hole and he catch him. Severely times I left him live cricket - he was walking across the terra 3-4 days and trapdoor didn't hunt him... How long could this spider live without food?

i do not know about this species. however, in most spiders their abdomen (butt) will shrink when they need to eat. if the abdomen is round and still looks nice and good then the spider should be fairly healthy. a tarantula of that size (5-7cm legspan?)could go anywhere from 2 months to two years without eating before it died, depending on species. i expect a trapdoor like that could very easily go a month. since you can see it and check on its abdomen that makes it easier for you

you can try leaving a cricket for 2-3 days and if it is not eaten take it out. after a week try putting another cricket it. you could not feed it for at least a month without doing any harm to it, i think. it might need to "learn" that the crickets are good to eat.

 

[DJ_AlMighty_247]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBf3cAGWSKk

^ My Gorgyrella inermis-female catching a beetle. It's easiest to spot the trapdoor-spider during the night. I feed her once a month with one small meal. Trapdoors can go for months without any food.