S. alternans clutch photojournal

Draiman

Arachnoking
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Ok so I figured I would put all the pics into one thread and date them and update the thread with new pictures as things progress. Enjoy :)

July 13, one or two days after the eggs were laid:



July 19:



August 1, turning into embryos:



August 3 (taken just a few minutes ago):

 

neubii18

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could you post some pics of her without the eggs?like when they hatch,or if you have some from before?
 

Draiman

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could you post some pics of her without the eggs?like when they hatch,or if you have some from before?
Certainly.

This one was taken on the day she arrived:



This is something I wouldn't recommend doing:

 

neubii18

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thanks!i think i've gotta get one now!how bad is their bite?a typical scolopendra bite?is it better or worse than subspinipes?
and is that called the "hatian giant"?
 

Draiman

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thanks!i think i've gotta get one now!how bad is their bite?a typical scolopendra bite?is it better or worse than subspinipes?
and is that called the "hatian giant"?
Yeah, these are commonly called the Haitian Giant, and they do get pretty large; up to 10".

According to cacoseraph, this species is no fun to get bit by:

my buddy went to the hospital and almost died from an alternans bite :)

i wish i could have been there so i could have seen it first hand :/

he's a big, tough guy, too. ~200 lbs, hikes a lot, etc
his blood pressure was so low 30 minutes after the bite the medicos had a hard time finding veins to spike to administer drugs


it looks like it was pretty much an anaphylactoid reaction, maybe even anaphylactic shock
well

the thing is this: he's not allergic to bees and has no known major allergies

and that is not the first time i have heard of someone having a major reaction to the venom... and i've never heard or read that about any other species. in my mind it is a very real possibility that S. alternans from Haiti is the most dangerous centipede out there to get bit by
For what it's worth. ;)
 

zonbonzovi

Creeping beneath you
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Great shots of the post-egg, pre-pling stage...they look like those damned awful butterscotch candies.
 

micheldied

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They look like jelly beans.
Can't wait to see those eggs turn into legs!
 

cacoseraph

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baby Haiti alternans have GREAT legs! some of the nicest shader legs i have seen... can't wait to see them with your very good photography :)
 

peterbourbon

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Nov 25, 2007
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Hi,

noticed my female laid a big clutch as well (overnight).
She was wild caught and refused to mate, now I know why.

I knew she was a female cause I sexed her with the gassing method.
Maybe interesting to add that the gassing did not seem to bother her, it was only approx. 2 months ago.

She burrowed a chamber 2 weeks ago - a sign she prepared to lay eggs.
Fortunately she built her chamber at the front glass, so I can watch her cleaning the eggs. :)

Cheers
Turgut
 

Crysta

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Feb 18, 2005
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adorable...i only see Scolopendra subspinipes "de haani" for sale here...
alternans are so pretty..
 

peterbourbon

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Hey,

she ate the clutch...and to be honest: It's more than okay. :D
I really feared to separate so many alternans since I keep some juveniles, raised from pedelings. That's more than enough.

Good luck, Gavin - looks like she's ready for babies. :)

Cheers
Turgut
 

Galapoheros

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That's great, they're moving along! I've never seen a pede eat eggs that show signs of development, but I do have a Scolopendra heros that I saw mate twice, and she has laid eggs twice since but each time she ate the eggs. She is in a small terr right next to one that has a bunch of babies, conditions look the same. I wonder what the difference might be, maybe something inside the pede is off, not ready to have babies, who knows.
 

Draiman

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Hey,

she ate the clutch...and to be honest: It's more than okay. :D
I really feared to separate so many alternans since I keep some juveniles, raised from pedelings. That's more than enough.

Good luck, Gavin - looks like she's ready for babies. :)

Cheers
Turgut
Ah damn. :( You could always have sold them or given them away or something, there will surely always be takers, for alternans at least. Always sucks to lose a clutch like that.

I actually saw my alternans mother eat a couple of her young yesterday, but she stopped after 2 or 3. Same thing happened with my mutilans mother. Probably just hunger after almost 2 months of fasting. The clutch is still intact today, so I suppose everything's fine. It would REALLY suck for her to eat them now!

p.s.: a little off topic, but do you keep any Floridan alternans Turgut?
 
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