Spider possibly dying, what about eggs?

[Vincent Sherloy]

I recently caught a golden huntsman spider (Olios giganteus), a mature female. In another thread I posted, I was talking about how she looked like she was pregnant. Sure enough, she was. Just a few days after catching her, she created a silk bag in a piece of PVC piping I use for my terrariums and laid her egg sac.
I usually keep my homemade terrariums outside, mainly to keep the bug from escaping indoors, but also to make the habitat as natural as possible. But when I checked on her yesterday, the terrarium was covered with ants.
They had somehow gotten into the habitat and were swarming the thing. I quickly took the PVC that the spider was nesting in, put it in an emergency enclosure (yes, I have those) and moved it far from the original spot.
Today I checked on the secondary enclosure, but the spider was out of her burrow, seemingly frying in the Sonoran sun. I had to take her and her nest BACK to the first habitat, now with the ants gone. I sprayed some water in there to keep the terrarium cool, and kept it in the shadiest spot nearby.
The spider moved a little and walked around slightly a few minutes afterward, but she went limp. She is still a wild spider, so I carefully lifted her with a twig into the PVC pipe, where I put it down outside of the enclosure.

Here's my question: Will the spiderlings survive or not? This is only my third mature huntsman I've caught and studied. I understand that many types of spiders die soon after childbirth, but I also know that huntsman spiders guard their eggs with extreme hostility, and can live up to two or three years. She may revive herself after a while, but if she doesn't, I'm worried that her eggs won't make it. Any suggestions?

 

[The Snark]

I'm sorry but in all likelihood the spider is dead. She's been injected with lethal doses of formic acid and is being digested. It only takes a few ant bites to start the process and there is no defense for this process. This is the ants job and they are very efficient at it.

 

[Vincent Sherloy]

I'm sorry but in all likelihood the spider is dead. She's been injected with lethal doses of formic acid and is being digested. It only takes a few ant bites to start the process and there is no defense for this digestive process.

But will the babies survive without her? Should I keep the egg sac to protect it from predators?

 

[The Snark]

If it contains viable eggs there is a good possibility. Huntsman are a durable tenacious animal. The slings start dispersing and are on their own minutes after hatching.
The egg sack needs to be protected from predation of course.

 

[Vincent Sherloy]

If it contains viable eggs there is a good possibility. Huntsman are a durable tenacious animal. The slings start dispersing and are on their own minutes after hatching.
The egg sack needs to be protected from predation of course.

Thank you. I'll keep the nest in the terrarium until then. Really appreciate it!

 

[The Snark]

I'll keep the nest in the terrarium until then. Really appreciate it!

Keep a very close eye on the sac and the environment. That is the mom's sole job during incubation. She normally keeps it way up high while looking downwards to spot predators coming and moves it (herself) frequently so scout ants and other scavengers won't be able to keep track of it.

Huntsman (Venatoria) hatching. She is as high up as she can go on a wall where she can see any enemy approach. Note the slings dispersing even as it's siblings are still hatching.

 

[Vincent Sherloy]

Is there an exact climate I should keep the eggs at? Sorry, never really took care of spiderlings before.

 

[The Snark]

I'd say.... dang. Very hard to say. The mom's quit eating shortly before laying eggs so she doesn't enter into her normal hunting environs. Their normal environs can be ANYTHING. Swamps, (they are even able to make short dashes on top of water) on out to desolate arid. At a guess, I'd say dry but high humidity. These plorks are the pro combat experts of the detritus even during the monsoons so they are pretty resistant to mold and fungi, but they always have lots free air circulation.

 

[Vincent Sherloy]

Yeah, I fed her a large roach before she laid her eggs; tried to give her a large meal before she had to go without food.
The eggs haven't been touched by the ants, believe it or not. Her silk walls in her burrow sealed them out. If she was inside the nest instead of gaurding outside, she might not've died.
I'll keep the eggs in the terrarium outside and away from any more ant hordes. I'm not sure if adding small amounts of mist will do any good, but I'll try it anyway.

 

[The Snark]

Wishing the kids the best of luck. If you do glance tank-wards and discover the hordes of Genghis roaming I'd suggest you let them munch each other until a dozen or two are left. Give them a leg up on life in the wilds. Not sure if they predate before the first instar. You want to try to contain escapees as they are insatiably curious, don't take to climbing walls until near maturity, and will often get squished under foot.