Arachne grew again (WARNING: large spider pics)

[Midnight_Dream]

And thank you all for answering my questions.

So is the silk that they make very strong? I imagine it is if they use it to protect themselves when they shed. I also wonder why they line their holes/tunnels with it...does it let them know if there is an intruder/possible prey? Or am I thinking of a different type of spider?

Oh! Are Wolf Spiders a part of the tarantula line or are they part of the true spiders?

[kaoskat]

LOL I dunno if it's strong, I'm not about to try to touch it! I'm guessing it's sticky so it would catch small insects and bugs that might try to take advantage of their weakened state.

Hubby says most wolf spiders are true spiders, yes.

[Gogobinsin]

thats nature for ya.   at least you prekilled the meal. i HATE when like pyrahnna owners throw live animals in the tanks and such

In the UK it is illegal for an owner to feed live vertebrates to other animals due to causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. Invertebrates such as crickets, locusts and meal worms are fine though. I realise this isn't the law everywhere and I know people have different views of the subject but personally I think it sucks for people to give live mice and chicks to snakes and such. It is more natural yes and animals to have the freedom to express natural behaviour is one of the 5 freedoms covered by the Animal Welfare Act 2006 (again a UK thing). It's tricky to do best by both animals and I understand how you feel but I just think how the animal would eat in the wild, food chain, survival of the fittest and all that

[Echo_Shell]

Spider silk varies in strength according to the species and purpose for which that species makes use of its silk, but on average it is about five times the strength of it's weight in steel.

[ZennaBug]

She's beautiful.  I love spiders and I have quite a few that live on my patio in my plants.  I catch them inside when I see them and release them in my garden to keep the bad bugs away.  But that's the extent of my arachnid husbandry.    Though I have held "Rosie" at the butterfly pavilion before... she made me nervous though.  As much as I love spiders, I get a little squirmy thinking about touching one. 

[NinaMarie]

Wow I'm so glad I found this thread. I've learned all kinds of fascinating things and enjoyed looking at photos.
I must admit i'm not the biggest fan of spiders. I've admired tarantulas in exhibits and people's homes but they make me shudder just a bit. I'm a jumpy person and when a spider appears in my personal space I immediately want to just whack it with a shoe.
I developed a bit of like and respect for our local fuzzy jumping spiders after having a war with a particularly large one. He/She (prob a she) was determined to live in our house. I caught her upstairs (with difficulty) and released her outside. She was the size of a nickel and would have been icky to squash  also i'm just not a killer. The next day i came home to find back in the house somehow so I once again sent her back outside. The third day I was opening my front door and I saw a movement. The little scamp was waiting on the door seal so she scurry in as soon as the door opened! I of course caught her and released her again (someone else's yard) because I still can't handle that big furry spider popping up randomly and startling me. But I stopped hating on the spiders so much.

[Phekzhen]

This thread is a good read! So now I have my own spider questions.

-How can molts go wrong? Do they get "stuck?" Or do they "break" something because they can't bend as much?

-Does the spider come out through the bottom of the abdomen? And is there a reason why it has to come off as one piece?

-Since tarantulas aren't as "evolved" as true spiders, is that why they rely on strength and size instead of the more complex web?

-And as a follow up question, what's the current hypothesis for what the earliest spiders used their silk for?

Also, have any of the spider owners hear read the FiM fic "Spiderses"?

[Takoto]

Ahhh she's adorable!
I've always wanted a pet spider, most likely a tarantula as they're awesome and kinda cute in my opinion, but my Mum would probably kill me if I brought one home ever. ;; My Granddad had one many, many, many years ago, and it grew to apparently be bigger than most tarantula, and got so strong it could open up it's tank's ceiling with ease, and climb out (they ended up putting books on top to make it impossible to open it- my Nan and Mum are scared to death of spiders aha;; )

[Echo_Shell]

This thread is a good read! So now I have my own spider questions.

-How can molts go wrong? Do they get "stuck?" Or do they "break" something because they can't bend as much?

-Does the spider come out through the bottom of the abdomen? And is there a reason why it has to come off as one piece?

-Since tarantulas aren't as "evolved" as true spiders, is that why they rely on strength and size instead of the more complex web?

-And as a follow up question, what's the current hypothesis for what the earliest spiders used their silk for?

Also, have any of the spider owners hear read the FiM fic "Spiderses"?

I'll field these for my wifey.

1.  Molts can go wrong in any number of way, but it generally has to do with the health or age of the spider.  A young, healthy, well-fed, well-hydrated spider will molt more easily than one lacking in any of the above qualities.  I have lost many spiders in this way due to age.  An old spider simply will not always have the strength to complete the molt.  I have never known spiders to break mid-molt, but I would not rule that out.

2. The spider will exit its shell through a joint between the cephalothorax (which literally means head-chest and comprises the central portion of the spider's body) and it's abdomen.  Because it literally exits its shell in this way, it will leave one whole shell behind.

3. Primitive should not be considered less evolved than true spiders.  Tarantulas and other primitive spiders are perfectly evolved to exploit the niche they hold.  This is not why they rely on brute strength.  They do not, in fact, rely on any such thing, but are stalking, stealthy, ambush hunters that employ their strength only in subduing a foe that has been carefully crept up upon and captured.  They use their webs in a way ideally suited to their purposes.  If this were not the case, they would not survive.  Nature does not typically tolerate anything less than perfection in the survival of any species and this species is no exception.

4. You may have to google that one yourself, but as spider silk would leave no fossil evidence, anything and everything you are likely to find will almost certainly be pure speculation.  I hesitate to enter the debate at all.

5. Ehm, no....I don't read fanfiction.

[Corona]

She's a cutie! I'm so jealous you have a tarantula, they're such great pets. How big will she get?

[kaoskat]

Hopefully to her species full size of 11 inches across.

[Echo_Shell]

Large enough to inflict "medically significant mechanical damage" with her jaws alone.

[Tux N Tails]

You're so lucky  I want a Tarantula but it's more than my life's worth. Everyone I know hates them intensely, I think they're cute.

She's a big girl though, just generally curious since I've never met a spider owner. What do you feed her?

[kaoskat]

She eats crickets, mealworms, and junebugs mostly.

[Echo_Shell]

She eats crickets, mealworms, and junebugs mostly.

You didn't give them the full list.  You know the one - that list you never tire of reciting.