My Pet A.Similis.

[marclar]

Unfortunatly, I'm unsure what to feed it, It wont eat woodlice.
It's webbed its little plastic thing up prety good now, and is pretty active.
This is my 2nd ever macro photo.

 

[Malhavoc's]

those are darling little spiders, and great hunters, they LOVe house flies. simply put one in and let it getcaught inthe webbing, it will run out grab it and run back down into its hide, they are very fascinating creatures, but also sensitive to light, so usualy they have avery dark crevice they use as a home.

enjoy

 

[marclar]

Yeah, he hidse under that rock, I'm going to ty the housefly now thank you, how do I give it water ?.

 

[Malhavoc's]

a light mist to the web wil lsuffice, but most water will be delivered from munching the insects it eats

 

[marclar]

Nice one , will do thanks.

 

[Merkalee]

Have you had any luck with the housefly? I had difficulty with my first pet in getting a live insect caught in the web (the first one was an orb-weaver...) If you encounter this problem, most spiders will also take freshly killed prey. You can lightly squash it and place it in the web with tweezers. Has it built a web?

I'm not familiar with this particular spider. If it hunts on the ground then you could just drop a young cricket (available at most pet stores for about 10 cents each) in the enclosure and watch it pounce.

Pretty little critter...

 

[KoreanSpiderMan]

If you live in cold countries, flying insects like moths can be common in certain times of the year. Midges and gnats can be found in spring. If this fails you can often order flightless fruit flies from pet suppliers. If you're collecting wild insects make sure they're from a place that has not been sprayed. Have fun and take care.

 

[marclar]

It webbed the place up, I fed it a moth, but then when I came home my brother told me he let it out because he doesnt want spiders in our room(we share a room)
Ill hide the spider in the press next time

 

[Malhavoc's]

just putting the fly in will drive the spider nuts, the flies will eventualy get caught in the hacklemehs style web. I've actualy got a relitive of this spider, that has neared a half inch legspan now quite impressive.

I've been testing various foods, for what they will speedily take and I find any soft bodied fly type insect will be very quickly accepted. I presume it is the vibrations of the wings, that entice the spider so greatly.

 

[Widowman10]

I presume it is the vibrations of the wings, that entice the spider so greatly.

did an experiment for one of my biology classes that dealt with vibrations and spider webs (spider was L. hesperus). interesting how quickly they responded to certain frequencies, but completely ignored other frequencies.

 

[Malhavoc's]

did the experiment go one to see if there was any identifying traits between species by the vibrations they create? I certiantly have noticed varying spider behavior before they have even made contact with the prey item, as if they know which can be harmful and what tactics to use, I imagion its a limited spectrum with only so many counter defenses and offensives to say a wasps stinger, but still absolutly brilliant.

 

[Widowman10]

well, we did use a range of vibrations. i have noticed however (not from the experiment, but from my own home feedings) that their attack/capture is different with different prey items. undoubtedly, bigger/stronger prey will give off stronger vibrations. i would also say that the flying critters would give off faster vibrations. so naturally, the spider would have a different tactic depending on the type of vibration. i've also seen different type of silk being used for capture. for instance, anyone who's owned/cared for treds will probably have seen this (better with this species than most). during capture, sometimes they will use thin lines of silk to swath the prey, but every once in awhile, they just go all out and this huge sticky globby mess comes out and it's lights out for the prey. anyway, i ramble. and go off-topic sometimes.