Phidippus regius slings

[kadupul]

I've got about 150 slings from two clutches and the older batch are starting to molt into i5. Some of the babies molted and now have an orange spot on their heads, while others have remained black and white. Is there any significance? Are the orange headed ones girls? Also, In the same batch of babies there are two slings that have remained at i2. They are being fed no differently, they have the same light, same temperature, and the same amount of water, yet they haven't molted past i2.

 

[egyptiancrow]

at i5, they start to develope their sexual dimorphic coloration. females will be colorful while males will remain black, white, (and grey at best). If the pedipalps are pure white, in addition to having white stripes on the legs, its a boy. But i dont say anything for certain til i6 myself.

 

[Backcountry critters]

I think they classify spiders by number of molts because they can develop at different time durations whether it's individual differences or environmental and ect. 2 spiders can both be 4 months old but have molted a different amount of times.

 

[egyptiancrow]

I think they classify spiders by number of molts because they can develop at different time durations whether it's individual differences or environmental and ect. 2 spiders can both be 4 months old but have molted a different amount of times.

totally correct! I have a spider that is i7, i4, i5, and i6, all from the same clutch born at the same time.

 

[regalpaws]

I have four P. regius slings too, and two that have emerged from the nest by at least 2 weeks later are significantly larger than the first two that emerged first. They all are healthy though. The mom died shortly after the egg sac was laid, so I dont know if this had an affect on them since she wasn't there to contain them longer? They're around i3/i4 or so, the smaller ones are i2/i/3; I should have kept better records of when they molted. :/ But anyways, I was wondering too. I hope that they all make it. They seem to be doing well.

 

[kadupul]

Thanks guys for replying to my questions.

 

[kadupul]

Well, I just checked in on my slings and one of my "runts" has passed away.

 

[egyptiancrow]

Well, I just checked in on my slings and one of my "runts" has passed away.

im so sorry to hear that when i have a batch of babes i keep all my runts, i dont adopt them out, until they are quite a lot older. sometimes they just pass no matter what you do. im sure you gave them an amazing life while they were with you!

 

[kadupul]

Did your runts grow into full-sized adults?

 

[egyptiancrow]

Did your runts grow into full-sized adults?

Not usually, no. Most of them stay small and mature small. Some of them even have shorter lifespans overall even with tiptop care. Its really unfortunate and my theory is for the most part, many of these spiders simply would not have made it outside, and its our personal care that has extended their life as much as it is. Sometimes being small is advantageous but for many runts it seems to be connected to genetic health and other issues and that is why they dont eat and grow properly