Two Spider Molts, 1 Stupid Owner!

[S. Schmidti]

Hey everyone, I want to start this post off by saying hello. I think this site is great. I have been lurking around here for quite awhile, but never had anything to post until now.
I ordered two lovely adult female spiders( my first T's) from Invertepet in Feb. One C. crawshayi, and one H. Lividum. Both arrived in great condition. They were eating, digging, and basically doing there thing in no time. Healthy, happy spiders.
Until last week. They both molted. The lividum came through with flying colors. I watched the whole process. It took about 20 minutes for her to be completely free from her exuvia.
The crawshayi was another story. She flipped on her back to molt on Tuesday a.m. I watched her for awhile, made sure there weren't any crickets in the tank,( I hadn't seen any for a week) and went to work. Came home for lunch to check on her. She was half way out of her shed, but there was a large !@#$%^& cricket sitting directly on top of her. I proceeded to shoo the cricket off her with a paintbrush and promptly crush it, but it was too late. It had chewed a hole in her head, and consumed part of a leg. She was laying in a pool of hemolymph.
I am soo pissed at myself! I was positive there weren't any crickets in there! That was a very costly mistake! A $ 90 spider killed by a 10 cent cricket!
Anyhow, my cobalt looks amazing with her bright new colors. Thinking about getting a new tarantula to replace my loss, but it will probably be awhile.
Planning on posting more in the future if I get around to it,
Scott Schmidt

 

[NightCrawler]

Welcome to the forum.
To bad your first post had to be with bad news. Sorry to hear about your misfortune

 

[hillie16]

Sorry to hear about the loss of your T. As soon as I think mine is getting ready for a molt, I'll pick up it's hide and make sure there are no crickets in there, although there is only on that I haven't wathced it eat.

 

[nemesis6sic6]

Yeah

I'm sorry about your loss.

C. crashayi is very beautifu and its sad to hear you lost one.

I'm sure everything will work out though. Get a new one

any ways have a nice day

geo

 

[arachnopunks]

That sucks. My philosophy on dealing with a lost spider is to buy 2 more. It makes you feel so much better.


-Jill

 

[MizM]

Welcome Scott! Sorry about your loss, but don't beat yourself up! It's not YOUR fault!! If you had had them longer, you would have known a molt was imminent and you would have been sure there were no predatory crix in the cage. Just think of it as a lesson learned, albiet a hard one!

 

[S. Schmidti]

Thanks everybody! I really appreciate all the kind words. I have some pics of my T's I might post in the future, if I could get my stupid digital camera to transfer pics to my computer. It is not reading the USB port.
As far as getting a new spider goes, I will probably get some kind of Baboon or Haplopelma species. I love the old world spiders, plus my gf is allergic to almost everything, urticating hairs probably included.
I really dig the Pterinochilus sp. on page 137 of The Tarantula Keepers Guide, by Stanley and Marguerite Schultz. Does anyone know exactly what species that spider is? What is the common name of that spider? Is it a dodoma or starburst baboon? I wouldn't mind picking one up if I could find out what species it is.
Thanks again and if anyone can answer my Pterinochilus question, I will be forever in your debt. (within reason)
Scott

 

[danielr6543]

Two Spider Molts, 1 Stupid Owner

well i think that p murinus and p sp are in fact the same species just different color forms but their common names are for the orange morph it is the usambar for the greyish gold morph it is the mombassa golden starburst but personally i think that they are the same species as does a famous arachnologist Rick West

 

[Immortal_sin]

first off, welcome!
second off... that completely sucks about your spider! What a bummer
third off ... good question. I'm looking at it right now, and I couldn't tell you...looks like a cross between a dodoma and an usambara. Maybe they are all just color morphs anyway, the whole genus was just revised.
I can't remember if dodoma and usambara were synonimized though!

 

[deifiler]

Originally posted by hillie16
Sorry to hear about the loss of your T. As soon as I think mine is getting ready for a molt, I'll pick up it's hide and make sure there are no crickets in there, although there is only on that I haven't wathced it eat.

Yeah good idea, though it's hard with a C.Crawshayi *hiss hiss*

My C.Crawshayi is due to moult, I keep finding crickets within her tank that've got in through the ventilation holes :/ The cricks are getting loose from my chameleons enclosure, though I sorted the problem a week back, but obviously crickets stilllurk around :<

Fingers crossed that I'll won't get caught out...

 

[Code Monkey]

Re: Two Spider Molts, 1 Stupid Owner

Originally posted by danielslipknot2
well i think that p murinus and p sp are in fact the same species just different color forms but their common names are for the orange morph it is the usambar for the greyish gold morph it is the mombassa golden starburst but personally i think that they are the same species as does a famous arachnologist Rick West

As does the taxonomist Gallon who *published* the revision of Ceratogyrus and Pterinochilus last year and synonmized the Usambara with P. murinus. This is why it's now referred to as P. murinus RCF if the person actually knows what they're talking about instead of just trying to sound like they do.

 

[manville]

oh man that really sucks sorry for the loss..

 

[MizM]

Re: Re: Two Spider Molts, 1 Stupid Owner

Originally posted by Code Monkey
As does the taxonomist Gallon who *published* the revision of Ceratogyrus and Pterinochilus last year and synonmized the Usambara with P. murinus. This is why it's now referred to as P. murinus RCF if the person actually knows what they're talking about instead of just trying to sound like they do.

I would be very interested to hear Volker and Martin H. express their views on this species! I, too, have read much about them being the same species, but one from a higher elevation.

 

[Code Monkey]

Re: Re: Re: Two Spider Molts, 1 Stupid Owner

Originally posted by MizM
I would be very interested to hear Volker and Martin H. express their views on this species! I, too, have read much about them being the same species, but one from a higher elevation.

Gallon is a very respected taxonomist, just not active in the online hobbyist community. I'm willing to bet that both Martin and Volker have no issues with the revision (and if my mind is working right again, I'm sure I've seen both of them reference this revision multiple times on the mailing lists).

You can get the revision here.

 

[MizM]

I've been treating them as the same species for some time now. To my untrained eye, they look EXACT, except for the color.

Now, I have an orange one and two "tan" ones.... have I heard of a grey morph, or is my memory failing me again.:?

 

[Telson]

Welcome , and sorry for the loss.

Something to consider trying when a molt is imminent, as a precaution in the future, would be to put a little oat meal or other attractive cricket food in the enclosure to draw any un-noticed little beasties away from the T while he/she molts. Just my opinion on it. It can happen to anyone though, so it's certainly not your fault.

 

[vulpina]

Welcome to the forum!!! Really sorry to hear about the loss, that sucks.

Andy

 

[MrT]

Originally posted by Telson
Welcome , and sorry for the loss.

Something to consider trying when a molt is imminent, as a precaution in the future, would be to put a little oat meal or other attractive cricket food in the enclosure to draw any un-noticed little beasties away from the T while he/she molts. Just my opinion on it. It can happen to anyone though, so it's certainly not your fault.

Thats a very good opinion. It should be a rule...

Ernie

 

[Charlie]

Sorry

Sorry about your loss...

I like Mizm's idea, go get two more!

And oh yeah, Welcome.

-Charlie

 

[pelo]

Hey it happens.I recently lost my A.versicolor sling to a cricket while in molt also.I thought I had no pinheads in the vial but one must have been hiding.I discovered my sling on it's back with a pinhead on top eating it up.I let the pinhead eat and then fed it to another sling...goes around..comes around.It's a drag to loose a spider that way though....peace..