Splits or Cracks in T's Legs!?

[Ph4nToM]

My T's legs looks like there are cracks or splitting running up them! Does this mean an upcomming molt or something? Its very strange.. I just noticed it today and its hard to explain.

About a week ago my T began to spin a web right beside its hide, I thought it was a molting web for it to lay on at first. It spun a fair sized web in about 1 hour. After it appeared to be done it actually flipped on its back, I was sure it was going to molt.. The whole time it was on its back it was kicking its legs and wasnt spread out like ive seen molting T's do.. After about 5 minutes of it flayling its legs it went back to the normal rightside up walking position..

Since then its Abdomen has has gotten darker but it still ate up until yesterday, it has refused food for the past 2 days. Then today I noticed the cracking or splitting going up the T's legs. Its still active, wandering in and out of its hide.

I didnt pay much attention to the "aborted molt" up until now.. Has anyone ever seen something like this happen?

I will try adn get some close up pics of its legs.

 

[becca81]

Could it have been building a sperm web?

What species?

 

[Ph4nToM]

N.chromatus, its about 3.5".

 

[jwasted]

I whould like to see a pic to help you with this.

 

[Cerbera]

I would hazard a guess that moulting is something to do with it, but it is ONLY a guess. From close examination of the exuvia of assorted spiders, their upper legs can and do split vertically down the seams as they extract their new legs. Specifically, on my L para, there are always splits down the upper sections of her back 2 legs on every moult.

I would be more worried to see this going on with a non-moulting spider, and never have done so far... lets hope you get lots of other replies from people who have experienced more...

 

[Ph4nToM]

I have been watching it make a web and flip over for the past hour and a half.. Its making a web then crawling underneath and flipping over, sitting there for about 3 minutes, then crawling out. It has repeated this process about 5 times in the past hour.. It seems as if she/he has given up now, its just sitting ontop of its hide.

This is what it did about 2 weeks earlier, what I described in the 1st post of this thread.. whats going on here? Can it just not find a comfortable place to molt or what?

 

[Cerbera]

Hmmm. I'd worry too, if one of mine was doing that. Sounds like a moult that won't start, or has started, and is going wrong. My initial instinct would be to up the humidity a bit, but that's an idea possibly born from the need to do SOMETHING, even though I don't know what.

You need lots of replies, and lots of help, and I hope you get it in time... on the plus side - you are in a very good place to get it...

 

[ShadowBlade]

There isn't really much u can do at this point. It just has to work this out itself. I myself would maybe just up the humidity a bit, like Cerbera pointed out. But dont' randomly spray around, just carefully a bit around the edges.

It sounds like it wants to molt. Let it go, do not disturb the cage, (u can spray a bit if he's not flipped.)

 

[Ph4nToM]

Ok, ill try using a syringe to spray water into each corner.. Its not flipped over now, just laying ontop of its hide.

Please, if anyone can help or knows anything about whats going on, please help. I am getting a bit worried now.

 

[ShadowBlade]

No no, it's allright, u don't have to use a syringe. U can spray the cage with a bottle, just don't soak the T and it's web mat.

I really don't think there's anything u can do. U can't make the T molt, though u might make his hide bigger, if he likes to hang out in it, because maybe he wants to molt in a dark place...
Wait..that's it, that's what i was going to say... Dark place...
Put his whole cage in a dark room, like a closet, where people won't be walking around much, and won't be much noise. Check in every once in a while. Maybe he's stressed out.

 

[Ph4nToM]

Ok, ill give the dark place thing a try. How long do you guys think it will take for him to try again and molt?

Again, if anyone has any comments or suggestions they are most welcome.

Thanks all.

 

[Cerbera]

Ok, ill give the dark place thing a try. How long do you guys think it will take for him to try again and molt?

Again, if anyone has any comments or suggestions they are most welcome.

Thanks all.

Almost impossible to tell, I would imagine, though IME, spiders ready to moult will try and do so as soon as conditions are to their liking...

 

[Ph4nToM]

Well, I left it in a dark room over night with higher humidity and s/he hasnt molted, its just sitting in the same place it was last night.

 

[becca81]

Can you please take a picture of the spider and post it?

You're saying that the spider is active, wandering in and out of its hide, and is making a web, crawling underneath it, and then getting back out.

My first thought, again, is that it's a mature male building a sperm web. A clear shot of the palps would confirm this.

 

[lucanidae]

I agree with becca, sounds like sperm webs, although 3.5 inches sounds small for a mature male. However, I've never heard of any T aborting a molt that many times, I don't even think they would be capable of that. Molting is hormone driven, when molting hormone is released into their system and builds up enough, they molt, no turning back. If they could choose, you wouldn't expect to see so many dying from trying to molt when tightly packed in shipping.

 

[Ph4nToM]

Can you please take a picture of the spider and post it?

You're saying that the spider is active, wandering in and out of its hide, and is making a web, crawling underneath it, and then getting back out.

My first thought, again, is that it's a mature male building a sperm web. A clear shot of the palps would confirm this.

No, it only wandered in and out of its hide between the 2 times in made a web, it refused food 3 days before it made its 2nd web (yesterday) and it is no longer active.

Also, its crawling underneath and flipping on its back and laying there.

Also, I just got this spider about a month ago now, for 70$ canadian, is it normal for a mature male to go that cheap?

I will try and get a picture but my camera is out of batteries. These are the only pictures I have of the spider, taken about 1 week ago taken for ID and I doubt it will help in trying to see if its a mature male.

You can see a bit of webbing at the top of the picture, this is where it has built both webs. The web in the picture has been pretty much destroyed due to it eating crickets there ect, it used to be about an inch off the ground this is exactly like the one is made last night, except that one is also now destroyed. Again, this is a picture taken before last night.

Now, that I look at the picture, those white lines going DOWN its legs are where the splits are.

 

[becca81]

The abdomen isn't dark and it doesn't look like an upcoming molt. If you can get some pictures of the palps, that will help.

Here's what you'll see as a molt approaches (darkening of the abdomen)...

Not in pre-molt:

In pre-molt:

 

[jwasted]

Good pic example Becca!

 

[Cerbera]

Well yes, but if its not in pre-moult, and I concur from your pic, what's going on with the splits and cracks down the legs that started the whole thing off ??! Any chance of a photo of those ? i appreciate that might be difficult to capture, depending on the positioning of it.

 

[Ph4nToM]

Ok, I was just able to get a pic of the cracks in its legs. Although s/he is sitting in an angle too hard to view its palps.

Anyways, heres the pic of the splits in its legs:

Any comments on what this is? Its on every leg.