pink-toe laid egg sac, fertile?

[SteelBlitz1]

hey all... I apologize ahead of time if there are numerous similar posts on here. I got her on 4/9/2011, and she has not been in contact with another spider since. Well today she closed off a corner of the enclosure, and is sitting on top of a bright white egg sac. I'm not sure what the gestation period is, but I can't imagine it being over a year. I am not a guru by any means, so I posted this to ask if there could possibly be babies in those eggs... my gut feeling is no, but I dont know. Thanks!

 

[Quazgar]

To the best of my knowledge, as long as it hasn't molted, it is possible. I believe they can essentially store the sperm until they are ready to use it or they molt, though somebody might correct that.

 

[Stan Schultz]

hey all... I apologize ahead of time if there are numerous similar posts on here. I got her on 4/9/2011, and she has not been in contact with another spider since. Well today she closed off a corner of the enclosure, and is sitting on top of a bright white egg sac. I'm not sure what the gestation period is, but I can't imagine it being over a year. I am not a guru by any means, so I posted this to ask if there could possibly be babies in those eggs... my gut feeling is no, but I dont know. Thanks!

Has she molted since you got her? If so, the eggsac is almost surely a dud. If not, there's a chance that she was still holding some viable sperm. Only time will tell.

It is not unusual for unbred female tarantulas to go through all the motions of producing an eggsac and laying eggs, but the eggs don't develop and hatch, and the female usually abandons the eggsac after a few days to a few weeks. With most animals there is no direct correlation between sexual intercourse/insemination/breeding and egg production. Witness for instance the domestic chicken (millions in so-called "egg factories" where the hens never even get to see a rooster), human females (e.g., nuns in convents menstruating anyway), many, MANY sessile, aquatic and marine invertebrates breeding with reckless abandon.

Just be patient, but restrict ventilation a little to raise the humidity. If she discards the eggsac in a week or so the eggs were infertile. Otherwise, you'll be blessed with 50 to 150 baby tarantulas soon. The incubation period is somewhere around 50 to 60 days at "room" temperature, but varies with that temperature. On your calendar, mark the day you first saw the eggsac and start counting!

Best of luck. Enjoy your little 8-legged brooder.

 

[Skeri]

If it turns out she doesn't abandon the sac I would go read the breeding reports and follow what they did on when to pull the sac and incubate it.