Trouble in Dodge

[Nemesis]

Spider Gurus Helpppp!!!!

* I purchased a gravid Rosea.
* Successfully incubated egg sack
* Opened Sack Dec. 25.
* S'lings had their first molt into what actually resembled Ts . Jan.20.
* Separated S'lings into smaller groups of 10/jar, Jan. 25.


Problem: They haven't eaten anything as far as I can tell.

I have pre killed, smashed and mutilated Crix, meal worms, beef heart, pinkies....in hopes of getting them to eat something. Their behavior is that of slings the books say are supposed to "eat stuff".

* Run around a lot
* Dispersed, not huddled together anymore.
* Climbing the jar walls.
* Have pink color, darker feet and abdomens.

I am worried that I am going to kill them by caring improperly for them. I covet your advise.

Pax
Kelly

 

[Arachniphile]

It is likely that they haven't eaten because they have been living off of the yolk sac, which will run out here shortly if not already.

You need to make one of two moves here:

1) Leave them all togehter and they will feed off of one another for a period of time. Some call it culling the weak. After a few weeks or more you would do option #2 anyways.

2) Seperate them all out into deli cups with a little moist substrate and either start a small cricket colony for pinheads, or continue to offer prekilled prey. Just like a dog, they will eat when they get hungry enough...

 

[chid]

You could try fruit flys although i have heard they arent the best longer term for them.You could try them to see if they will eat them though before moving on to micro crix
Chid

 

[Weapon-X]

re

if i were you i would seperate them , becasue if you leave them together more than lightly the ones being eaten will be females why waste good t's if you plan on selling them(if that is your plan anyhow), i'd go with feeding them pre-killed--Jeff

 

[rknralf]

Are the spiderlings 1st or 2nd instar? The 1st instar look like tarantulas, but they usually have much larger abdomens for their size. If they are first instar, they will not eat.
If they are second instar, I would try pinhead or 1 week crickets. I got a bunch of 1 week crickets from Flukers Farms and they were great for activativing the feeding response for my Usambara spiderlings. (Note: Rose Hairs are smaller than the Usambara spiderlings, so I would probably recommend pin heads.) After a few feedings with the 1 week crickets, they should have enough of a feeding response to move on to slightly larger prey.
Also, on the 1st instar vs 2nd instar question. Had the spiderlings emerged on their own from the eggsac? If not, they are probably 1st instar. My Usambaras molted once in the sac and once outside the eggsac. They had emerged from the sac, but had not left the protective confines of the webbing.
I hope this helps, please feel free to email me if you like. I'll be happy to share my experiences with spiiderlings.
Ralph

 

[rknralf]

Re-reading your post, I really suspect yours are 1st instar. If they are, they will live off the reserves in their abdomens until the next molt.
Please keep us all posted.

 

[Arachniphile]

if i were you i would seperate them , becasue if you leave them together more than lightly the ones being eaten will be females

I wonder if anyone has ever done any studies on this? Could be useful if it really did impact the gender split of an eggsac..

 

[Nemesis]

I don't know what instar they are.
I waited 63 days from the time she laid the eggs till I opened the sack. They didn't wildly disperse, like I read they probably would, and looked more like eggs with legs. they molted for the first time Jan. 20, and now look like the pics of spiderlings I see on various sites. They are probably not even .5 in long from tip to tail (o: So do you think they are still 1st instar?

....as far as selling them...I haven't got a clue. I don't know what to do with them. I have worried over them too much to let them eat each other. I am going to save 40 for Lydia's science fair experiment. I gave about 100 away to a local dealer, so I have some left. Anyone near Tallahassee interested in trading for some Rosies...come and get em.

Pax,
Kelly

 

[Joy]

Originally posted by Nemesis
I don't know what instar they are.
I waited 63 days from the time she laid the eggs till I opened the sack. They didn't wildly disperse, like I read they probably would, and looked more like eggs with legs. they molted for the first time Jan. 20, and now look like the pics of spiderlings I see on various sites. They are probably not even .5 in long from tip to tail (o: So do you think they are still 1st instar?

Pax,
Kelly

It sounds to me as though their recent molt was into 2nd instars. When you opened the eggsac, could they move around at all or just wiggle their legs? If they could walk properly, they were 1st instar at that point, and I'll bet they start eating any day now. It sometimes takes a while with slow-growing species like G. rosea.

Joy

 

[Nemesis]

Thank You everyone. I feel better, now.

Yes Joy, they were able to walk well, but they didn't climb and prefered to stay huddled together. I'm glad to know they are 2nd instar, and that it is not abnormal for them not to eat quite yet.

When I got into spiders, I was relieved to , "have an animal that I could observe with a certain amount of psychical distance." HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! . I need a valium (or 10)

Pax,
KO