Latrodectus Enclosure Maintenance

[Sathane]

I just picked up half a dozen of these beautiful ladies and realized something after watching one ensnare and tangle it's prey.

How do I go about removing the bolus from their enclosures without damaging the web?

 

[Widowman10]

1- this would probably get more answers if posted in the true spiders section

2- they don't require that much food, and if keeping their enclosures fairly dry (which is what i do) food won't decompose as fast or as nasty as it does on wet sub. if you feel you simply have to do it, do it every couple of months or so, it's not that big of a deal to the spider, it just fixes a few of the threads.

 

[Sathane]

Oops. Yes, I'll be sure to put this in the proper area next time.

I keep them dry too so this should be fine then. Tonight I also observed one of my specimens actually untangle one of the boluses from her web and drop in to the bottom of her enclosure - kind of like she was doing her own housekeeping. Is this typical?

I did notice a few remains at the bottom of other enclosures previously but just assumed that the ladies had eaten them where they were.

1- this would probably get more answers if posted in the true spiders section

2- they don't require that much food, and if keeping their enclosures fairly dry (which is what i do) food won't decompose as fast or as nasty as it does on wet sub. if you feel you simply have to do it, do it every couple of months or so, it's not that big of a deal to the spider, it just fixes a few of the threads.

 

[Widowman10]

Tonight I also observed one of my specimens actually untangle one of the boluses from her web and drop in to the bottom of her enclosure - kind of like she was doing her own housekeeping. Is this typical?

very typical. they will cut loose the prey item when done. also, interestingly, they will pull it back up and eat some more if they feel hungry or want a snack. pretty cool stuff- it always catches me off-guard for a second (like, hey, i don't remember feeding her :?) and then i realize

 

[Sathane]

That's great, and will help with maintenance. I'm thinking about cutting a small port in the lower end of my enclosures and installing a sliding door of sorts so that I can reach in with a set of forceps and grab those boluses when needed. I'll leave them in until they have no 'meat' left though since they snack on them. Thanks for the help.

I've only had these guys for a few days and I'm entranced by them. Especially when I watched them start building their webs. Watching them spin and twirl around their webbing while putting it all together was quite the experience. Lost about an hour watching them do their thing.

very typical. they will cut loose the prey item when done. also, interestingly, they will pull it back up and eat some more if they feel hungry or want a snack. pretty cool stuff- it always catches me off-guard for a second (like, hey, i don't remember feeding her :?) and then i realize

 

[Moltar]

The couple of widows i've had were kept in upside-down plastic jars with the lid at the bottom. like widowman said, they'd cut loose their eaten prey and it wold drop to the bottom. Cleanup was as simple as unscrewing the lid and tapping it out into the trashcan.

 

[Widowman10]

The couple of widows i've had were kept in upside-down plastic jars with the lid at the bottom. like widowman said, they'd cut loose their eaten prey and it wold drop to the bottom. Cleanup was as simple as unscrewing the lid and tapping it out into the trashcan.

good idea. a lot of people use the upside down thing. sometimes though, if widows drop down the strands they use for catching prey (with sticky globs on the end) those get tangled up and messed up. not that it's that big of a deal though...

 

[Moltar]

Yeah I was surprised how simple Latrodectus keeping is.

Sathane, in case you didn't already know, they're pretty docile and in spite of their strong venom quite safe to keep as well. Their instinct is not to bite defensively but to instead deter intruders with lots of strong sticky web. That's not to say they won't bite you, just that it's pretty unlikely. The only safety tool you'll really need is a long pair of tweezers/tongs.

They constantly work on their web so if you have to break it up sometimes that's just how the ball bounces. They'll fix it.

 

[Sathane]

Thanks for the heads up. I was slightly nervous about them when I ordered them, considering their reputation, but read a ton of stuff before their arrival and am completely fine with them now. I would just rather not disturb them more than absolutely needed.

You're not kidding, some of them had webbed a bit in the paper towel they were packed in into the vials and it was surprising strong.

Yup, I love watching them work on their webs. It's like they dance all over it while waking their legs around. lol.

Yeah I was surprised how simple Latrodectus keeping is.

Sathane, in case you didn't already know, they're pretty docile and in spite of their strong venom quite safe to keep as well. Their instinct is not to bite defensively but to instead deter intruders with lots of strong sticky web. That's not to say they won't bite you, just that it's pretty unlikely. The only safety tool you'll really need is a long pair of tweezers/tongs.

They constantly work on their web so if you have to break it up sometimes that's just how the ball bounces. They'll fix it.

 

[zwd22]

Are widow venom really that strong??? I remember hearing a lot when i was a kid about black widow venom being super strong and will kill you easily and stuff... but I'm pretty sure that's exaggerating right???

 

[Neophyte]

If you ever do some interesting alterations to your Snapware enclosures please share! I'm still trying to find ways to remove boluses from those containers without ruining webs or having runaway T's.

 

[SlaytanicArachnid]

Are widow venom really that strong??? I remember hearing a lot when i was a kid about black widow venom being super strong and will kill you easily and stuff... but I'm pretty sure that's exaggerating right???

im pretty sure it depends on age, size and health

 

[Moltar]

Yes, their venom is quite strong, some spp more than others but they'll all put a hurtin' on you. If they mistook your finger for prey and gave you a good envenomation you would definitely regret it. You're not likely to die from it but you'd be seriously hating life for a few days at least. I believe it's a neurotoxic venom but don't quote me on it.

A small child could conceivably die from a bite as could people with poor health, elderly, etc. So yeah, rule #1 for keeping latros: Use tongs for everything in spite of their generally docile temperament. No fingers in the cage ever.

 

[SlaytanicArachnid]

my dad was bitten by a brown widow 2 summers ago, the finger bit turned black and purple. the other fingers were all discolored and swollen. it took 4 weeks before there was no pain or discoloration. he said the pain was intense from his finger all through his arm and into his chest for aboot aweek then it subsided.

 

[Sathane]

I'm thinking about using my Dremel and cutting out a small 'hatch' - maybe 3/4" high by 2" wide - on the back (the flat strip on the back) and turning it into a sliding door somehow. Still haven't ironed out the details but if I get ahold of some acrylic to play with I'm sure I could fashion some rails to slide the 'door' on and melt them on so it works.
When I've got a good chunk of time to kill I'll try it out and let you know how it goes.

If you ever do some interesting alterations to your Snapware enclosures please share! I'm still trying to find ways to remove boluses from those containers without ruining webs or having runaway T's.

 

[Sathane]

I read quite a few of the bite reports on the Latrodectuses (Latrodectii?) and, although they sounds like something I would rather not experience, it actually made me feel better about bringing a bunch of them into the house.

Rehousing was super easy too. Not one of them attacked my tweezers like so many of my Ts have, instead they just ran away from them and onto whatever I prodded them towards.

The only downside I can see to these guys is their tiny size, compared to my Ts. I don't know if most of you realize how hard it is to properly fit these guys for a decent pair of hockey skates and a stick. Don't even get me started on knitting them a toque, eh...

my dad was bitten by a brown widow 2 summers ago, the finger bit turned black and purple. the other fingers were all discolored and swollen. it took 4 weeks before there was no pain or discoloration. he said the pain was intense from his finger all through his arm and into his chest for aboot aweek then it subsided.

 

[SlaytanicArachnid]

there are brown widows everywhere here. ive got a few females with egg sacks in all corners of the basement. i get rid of the sacs most of the time, but they seem to take a really long time to hatch, they were made probly in december and theyre still full and hanging.

 

[Sathane]

I'm not sure what the incubation period is for these guys just yet but I'd incubate them then see if some dealers would buy them off you if they are fertile and produce little widows.

there are brown widows everywhere here. ive got a few females with egg sacks in all corners of the basement. i get rid of the sacs most of the time, but they seem to take a really long time to hatch, they were made probly in december and theyre still full and hanging.

 

[Sathane]

I'm not sure what the incubation period is for these guys just yet but I'd incubate them then see if some dealers would buy them off you if they are fertile and produce little widows.

EDIT: Not exactly sure how this got double posted . I think I may have hit the back button on my browser or something and the form was resubmitted. Sorry. :?

there are brown widows everywhere here. ive got a few females with egg sacks in all corners of the basement. i get rid of the sacs most of the time, but they seem to take a really long time to hatch, they were made probly in december and theyre still full and hanging.

 

[Widowman10]

I'm not sure what the incubation period is for these guys

20-40 days depending on things. if they've been there since december, well, probably no luck...