What do they eat?

[Intercooledgn]

So my barn orbweaver's egg hatched unforunately the mother passed away and this is my first breeding. I am curious though what to feed them when they look like a specle of dirt. I used my zoom and took a pic of one. Any assistance that can be given woul be GREATLY appreciated. Thank you in advance to all who respond.

 

[chanda]

It is typical for orbweavers to pass away before their offspring hatch out - think Charlotte's Web (Charlotte was also a Barn Spider, Araneus cavaticus) - but the babies hatch out knowing instinctively what to do even without Mom around to look after them. Their natural instinct is going to be to disperse (so they don't overtax the food resources in the immediate area where they hatched), so they'll try to climb to a high spot and spin out strands of silk in an attempt to go ballooning. Given the number of hatchlings in a typical sac, you may want to let at least some of them do this - take them outside and let some of them go, while keeping a few to raise. Alternatively, if you keep them all together, they will eat their siblings until only the strongest are left. As far as feeding the ones you keep are concerned, they need tiny prey - aphids, fruit flies, gnats, etc. They also need LOTS of room with good air flow and plenty of twigs or other attachment points so they are able to make their webs and capture their prey.