tarantulas tasting with their feet?

[Dreamslave]

Just realized that i posted this thread in the wrong section, can anyone move it to the questions section please???

So i've been reading that t's can ''taste'' with their feet or something? Could that explain why many arboreals (avics) seem to dislike human skin? And could a t be tricked if you apply some ''cricket juice'' on your hand, would it bite it after tasting it?

Does that tasting with their feet thing have something to do with ''Chemotactics''???

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjNB6pi_VNs&feature=channel_page

 

[Pokerplayer]

When u say taste, its not like we humans do.
The "taste" the wibes from the prey, to get a feel if its something the can get away with trying to eat.
A T has sensitive hairs on its legs the detekt movements and the legs might be able to tell the difference in the preyitems on the wibes the get from them.
Im also pretty sure the can "taste"/fell what type of prey is moveing on the ground, by the wiberations on in the ground.

So NO...the will NOT bite u in the arm, because u smell like a roach/rat from never taking a bath ;P

But snakes might do this.
Thats because the "taste"/smell the air more like we humans do, compared to T`s

 

[Pokerplayer]

i forgot.

The reason i would think the dislike human skin, is because spider is WAAAAY more sensitive then humans, and for good reasons.
Your heart is pumping huge amount of blood around your body and i think u would know how to check your pulse in your wrist right??

The spider can sence this.
Your blood pumping around underneeth your skin, is like putting your hand on a table and someone pounding a hammer besides your hand.
U would also feel that someting was going on, even if u were blind and had no ears.
The same goes for the spider.
Its not that stupid.
It can feel its crawling on something living and that not good for survivel in the wild = its trying to get away from u for obv. reasons.

This is not sience and is only my conclusions.
But it just seems like common sense 2 me when u think of it.

 

[wedge07]

My Avics have no problem crawling on skin. To answer your question: Tarantulas do kind of taste and smell with their feet. Tarantulas have organs on their feet for perceiving airborne chemicals and humidity. They also have chemically sensitive hairs on their legs and pedipalps that act as taste organs (Marshall, Sam D.).

 

[gvfarns]

Yes tarantulas can taste your skin with their feet, for sure. No chance of them biting it after touching it, though. They take most of their information in through touch and we don't feel like bugs, no matter how much we may smell like them.

I've seen lots of T's that prefer not to be on flesh. Most of them, actually. It's not clear whether it's the smell or the constant movement I'm inclined to think the latter. Our clothes and other things don't squirm around underneath them the same way we do (because of the blood pumping, etc, as has been mentioned). I suspect they can tell we are living things and they don't like it.

 

[zwd22]

Also, to comment on the tricking a T to bite you thing. Even if your T think your hand is a cricket, it is one huge cricket... and animals usually don't like to tackle preys that are bigger than they are.

 

[Sky`Scorcher]

I noticed my crawshayi sling placing its foot on a sliced mealworm part and immediately knew it was a food item.

I also had the thought that time too that T's taste with their feet and I guess its right.

 

[burmish101]

I always assumed they didnt like the oils in human skin.

 

[Rindy]

I agree our heart beat must feel huge to them. I also wonder what they feel of the internal working of the trees they take refuge in. Can they feel the huge number of gallons moving from the roots to the leaves (as in rainforest trees) and the creaking and groaning in wind? They certainly live in a different world of sensations.
I suspect much of how they react has to do with not just particular instincts born in the species but also the individual T. We see differences in males so we know hormones must affect behavior and we also know hormones have cycles. There must also be a mechanism for recording dangerous senarios and each individual will have different experiences so different responses to some degree. That's my two cents anyway.