Exotic Invertebrates, True Spiders, and Tarantulas

[jynxxxedangel]

Here is a photo which demonstrates the sexually dimorphic size-difference between Arwen and Aragorn, my breeding pair of P. audax jumping spiders. Each is sucking away happily at a green moth I caught out in the yard. I took this photo only moments ago.

[jynxxxedangel]

More photos of my new little one.

This little jumper can take down flies so much larger than itself. I've seen it get tossed about and taken for a ride like a cowboy on a Brahma bull-- on more than one occasion! How very entertaining to observe.

I <3 my spiders!

[jynxxxedangel]

Here are some pics of my middle-spider (same one as above) after its last moult, two days ago. I still don't know if it's male, or female-- but it is currently the same size as its sire (Aragorn). Isn't it neat how the colours change with each new skin?

See how pretty? I love the red markings-- very different from the two parent spiders. I sure hope this one is a girl!

Edited September 12, 2008 by jynxxxedangel

[Guest greyhalo]

You're a great spider-mom.

[jynxxxedangel]

I know!

They're so spoiled. It's easy to go apeshit over them, because they're so interesting and easy to care for.

I DO have some extra spiderlings, if there is anyone here who keeps a cricket colony, and has pinheads (tiny baby crickets)! These little jumpers are so cool-- they are even more active and interactive than tarantulas. I don't know why more people don't raise them.

Edited September 12, 2008 by jynxxxedangel

[Head Wreck]

i've had Crickets get loose here once.

not pleasant trying to sleep with that racket.

i saw the oddest arachnid the other week.

it was a harvestman, yet had the leg sise and thickness of a garden spider (Metellina segmentata), its body was also marked as that of the thorax of a garden spider. bizzare. bugger moved to quick for me to catch it to photograph it, and ran into the direction we'd been putting rescued Slow worms.

as far as jumping spiders go. i've only ever seen Zebra spiders

[jynxxxedangel]

Dicranopalpus ramosus, my dear.

Edited September 13, 2008 by jynxxxedangel

[Head Wreck]

legs were shorter and wider. just a few mm longer than the body.

i'd honestly not seen one before ever

[jynxxxedangel]

When Opilionids are juvenile, their legs are shorter, so they appear more spider-like. The one you saw was most likely a female, as they are much larger and stouter than the males. This is the time of year for them to mate, so you will probably be seeing many more.

Harvestmen can regenerate lost limbs. I have actually seen one with only two legs crawling about, and the rest beginning to grow back as small buds at the joints. This can come in handy, after a narrow escape!

P.S. Slow worms are TOO COOL! Very interesting how the young are born directly from the female, as the eggs hatch inside her oviduct. This is unusual in lizards. They are also able to automize (lose their tail and regrow it), like many other lizard species. Their numbers are decreasing in Great Britain, so they are now under protection. We have a few species of legless lizards here in the states, but most live in warm places, such as California and Florida.

Edited September 13, 2008 by jynxxxedangel

[Black Jack (1)]

Arachne is the god of spiders. It be nice if all that skill was used for something.

[jynxxxedangel]

Out of this horrible rainy day, one good thing has come to me; a mature female Platycryptus undatus!!

My uncle showed up with some food, toilet paper, kitty litter, and a load of wood earlier. While I was tossing the wood out so he could stack it (in the pouring rain), I noticed a very wet little jumping spider in the bed of his truck! Of course, "Elmira" here went running to find something to put her in!

I'm so stoked about this spider!! This is the first one of this particular species I've ever seen here. I'm assuming she hitched a ride all the way from Pontiac, as that is where the wood came from.

I will photograph her the next sunny day, when I have some good lighting.

[Head Wreck]

i've had a fantastic day here which means thier all out in force.

and i had to rescue an odity from my sister terrified throwing fit, now a resident of my armoury, warm dry and plenty to catch.

also spotted was this gorgeous Wasp spider, Brilliant greens and yellows on it. i really need to find my camera charging lead. its spider month after all.

slow worms are a fascination ever since a kid, my dad used to be afraid of them but used to bury the fear to show me them as a kid, so i wouldn't pick his phobia up. in doing so he cured his own fear. when clearing the second driveway i found a few of both sexes and my gardens a moggie free zone (thanks to a psychotic Merl Collie and a staffie crossed with a whippet (just as adgile as a cat and a damn site quicker). It's a criminal offence to kill or injure any of the UK's native reptiles. Slow-worms are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981. It is an offence to kill, harm, injure, sell or trade them in any way.

[jynxxxedangel]

Oh wow, Walt!! You MUST get some photographs!!!! I've always been curious about the spiders and other wildlife of Great Britain. Please find that charging lead!

[jynxxxedangel]

Hooray!!!

Both my sub-adult spiders are FEMALE! Upon close inspection with a magnifying glass and flashlight, I see epigyna!!!!!!!!

Y'all have no idea how stoked I am the spider with red markings is female!!!

[Guest greyhalo]

I have to say that I am learning a lot about spiders and slow worms due to this thread. I love all sorts of animals, so it's nice to see others' enthusiasm as well. Every time someone mentions something I don't know about here, I have to go look it up right away and learn about it. I didn't know anything about slow worms before this thread. Thanks.

[jynxxxedangel]

If anyone would like to learn a wealth of info about arachnids, insects, and herps, check out Arachnoboards!

Shameless plug of my second favorite forum's URL

Of course, my favorite section of topics is the "True Spiders"!

[Guest greyhalo]

If anyone would like to learn a wealth of info about arachnids, insects, and herps, check out Arachnoboards!

Shameless plug of my second favorite forum's URL

Of course, my favorite section of topics is the "True Spiders"!

Thanks. I'm trying to learn more about herps too. I'm considering getting a bearded dragon as a work/library pet.

[Troy Spiral (13)]

If anyone would like to learn a wealth of info about arachnids, insects, and herps, check out Arachnoboards!

Shameless plug of my second favorite forum's URL

Of course, my favorite section of topics is the "True Spiders"!

*sheepishly clicks* (Afraid of having yet ANOTHER interest added to my already 9000 items deep list of interests)

[jynxxxedangel]

Mwahahahahaha!

ALL shall join forces with me, and my great army of genetically-engineered jumping spiders!

[vampire]

itzy bitzy spider went down ....

[jynxxxedangel]

Speaking of itsy-bitsy spiders, check out this oddball! It has a long neck, and even longer jaws (a perfect adaptation for avoiding the jaws of the other spiders it preys upon):

Assassin Spider

I wish there were a better photograph, showing the anatomy of this animal! I guess no one has returned out into the field to study it since these were taken.

Edited September 15, 2008 by jynxxxedangel

[Head Wreck]

now that is weird.

and yet cool

[jynxxxedangel]

Here's another interesting spider. Fuck, I wish I lived in Australia sometimes, or at least had a cottage there!!

Maratus volans (was Saltis volans). Peacock or Gliding Jumping Spider:

This male spider has two flaps on either side of his abdomen that are put away underneath him when not in use, and are edges with white hairs. When the spider jumps, he extends the flaps-- and uses them to glide through the air, as far as 20 cm! His size is between 4 and 5 mm.

When the brightly-coloured male courts with his relatively duller mate, he expands his flaps, and raises his legs tipped with white hairs. A spectacular courtship dance.

WANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Edited September 16, 2008 by jynxxxedangel

[jynxxxedangel]

Here's a new pic (hot off the SD card!) of one of Arwen's wild progeny, doing good work out in the garden.

Immature Phidippus audax, eating an as-of-yet unidentified fly on my peony bush. I need to ID this fly, I've never seen any like it before. It is very large, about 1 1/2 cm, black, and all speckled with silver.

Now you know why these little guys are called 'Bold Jumping Spider'. Look at the size difference between the spider and prey!

Edit: I think the fly is a Tachinidae sp., not 100% sure, but pretty sure.

Edited September 16, 2008 by jynxxxedangel

[jynxxxedangel]

Here is a photo of my new Platycryptus undatus, sitting on my finger! I just love her to bits! Her face is so cute, with the white eye crest and black shoe-button eyes-- I wish I could get a decent shot of her features.

It was hard to get a clear photo of her-- she's a fast little girlie!

I need to think of a name for her, now..

Edited September 18, 2008 by jynxxxedangel