Sicarius molting Question

[MorbidArachnid]

Hey I couldn't really find anything when searching through the forums on this. Got a sicarius thomisoides a few months ago, she molted with me once and I just upgraded her.
When she molted with me she molted hanging off the ceiling of her old enclosure, but in this enclosure she's not able to climb the sides. Should I put something in there to help her molt? Can they molt on the ground? Or does she need a cork bark or something to hang off of?

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Hey I couldn't really find anything when searching through the forums on this. Got a sicarius thomisoides a few months ago, she molted with me once and I just upgraded her. View attachment 474437
When she molted with me she molted hanging off the ceiling of her old enclosure, but in this enclosure she's not able to climb the sides. Should I put something in there to help her molt? Can they molt on the ground? Or does she need a cork bark or something to hang off of?

I think it’s vertical cork bark , which people use for similar inverts. I’m surprised it can climb acrylic I’ve never had a sand spider so good luck . I’m sure an expert will chime in soon.

 

[RoachCoach]

Have you seen this video from Clint's Reptiles on the sand spider?

 

[MorbidArachnid]

Have you seen this video from Clint's Reptiles on the sand spider?

Yeah, personally not a huge fan of his and he doesn't specify what they molt off of. This video especially he leans in hard with the fear mongering about their venom and doesn't really mention that they're extremely reluctant to bite and that they can't climb smooth surfaces so are very easy to contain. Obviously when keeping hots you should be prepared for the worst and with this spider the worst could be extremely severe, but it was a bit irritated that he kept driving home that it could "end your marriage" if it escaped and talking about how significant the venom is when there have only been two confirmed bites of this genus ever and it's not the most interesting thing about this spider.

 

[NYAN]

I’ve found that many people keep these incorrectly. In the wild, they do not occupy barren sandy areas like the above enclosure. People tend to keep them like this for the novelty I presume.

Ive always provided them cork bark or some other object so that they can molt properly and also for them to hide under.

In the wild, you will find that these are often found under objects. You don’t need to provide anything completely vertical. A flat piece of cork bark will suffice.

 

[NYAN]

Yeah, personally not a huge fan of his and he doesn't specify what they molt off of. This video especially he leans in hard with the fear mongering about their venom and doesn't really mention that they're extremely reluctant to bite and that they can't climb smooth surfaces so are very easy to contain. Obviously when keeping hots you should be prepared for the worst and with this spider the worst could be extremely severe, but it was a bit irritated that he kept driving home that it could "end your marriage" if it escaped and talking about how significant the venom is when there have only been two confirmed bites of this genus ever and it's not the most interesting thing about this spider.

The idea that Sicarius are medically significant is actually antiquated information. There’s been research since published that shows that most all Sicarius species lack the enzyme that can cause necrosis and systematic reactions. Keep in mind that the Sicarius genus now only refers to new world sand spiders. The African ones are a different genus and this does not apply to them.

Also, anecdotally, I’ve been bitten before by thomisoides and nothing happened at all.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0041010110000358

Sphingomyelinase D Activity in Sicarius tropicus Venom: Toxic Potential and Clues to the Evolution of SMases D in the Sicariidae Family - PMC

The spider family Sicariidae includes three genera, Hexophthalma, Sicarius and Loxosceles. The three genera share a common characteristic in their venoms: the presence of Sphingomyelinases D (SMase D). SMases D are considered the toxins that cause ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[MorbidArachnid]

I’ve found that many people keep these incorrectly. In the wild, they do not occupy barren sandy areas like the above enclosure. People tend to keep them like this for the novelty I presume.

Ive always provided them cork bark or some other object so that they can molt properly and also for them to hide under.

In the wild, you will find that these are often found under objects. You don’t need to provide anything completely vertical. A flat piece of cork bark will suffice.

Thank you! Very helpful.

 

[TheWidowsPeak]

I have a bit of cork bark in with my two sicarius and both of them molt hanging from the sides of the bark. They also like to bury themselves beside it.

 

[IsaacC1221]

I've found that mine propped itself up on a twig to molt, and it worked fine. It doesn't seem to me like they require a vertical surface or something to hang off of.