Gravid Trapdoor Pic

Arachniphile

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Oct 3, 2002
Messages
105
Sorry I haven't been around alot (not that anyone REALLY misses me.. lol) but the challenges of homeownership have been overwhelming to say the least!!

During the latest project on my "Honey-Do" list it required digging out the stump of a Hawthorn tree we had cut down last year. About four scoops into the job I noticed a shiney blackish thing in the dirt pile. It was a rather large trapdoor spider (not sure of exact species at this moment). I got a small container, captured it, and resumed digging. Now finding one of those while digging is a stroke of luck most of the time, but by the time I got done digging all the way around that stump (hole is approx 4' wide and 18" deep) I had collected 4 of these spiders and had released prolly 15 smaller ones away from where I was digging. All of thier burrows were quite close to the tree stump itself and were quite close (within 1-2") in proximity to one another. Makes me wonder if these spiders live perhaps in a bit of a "loose" colony? Food for thought anyways.

The four specimins that I kept are all gravid females. Here is a pic I took of the largest. She is so full of eggs you can see them through the abdomen. This was just so cool to see I had to share it here... Hope you like!


CLICK the photo for a larger image...



 

jwb121377

Arachnoangel
Old Timer
Joined
Aug 20, 2002
Messages
905
Ofcorse we miss you! Man is she ever gravid, it is wild how you can see the eggs.
 

Neo

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
May 9, 2003
Messages
182
Holly crap!! Lol. Is there a possibility she is just fat instead? Just wondering...
 

blackacidevil

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 3, 2003
Messages
315
Originally posted by Neo
Holly crap!! Lol. Is there a possibility she is just fat instead? Just wondering...

If you read the post before yours and then look closely at the pic you will see that it is NOT just fat.
 
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