my prize reclusa died!

[pandinus]

i do not keep L reclusa, as there are so many where i live, that it would be like keeping a rock while living in a quarry. that said, i do raise and sell them to the less fortunate, and when i was checking them out the other day, i noticed my prize female had died. she is too beautiful to throw out, so i will cast her in resin. in any case, i thought i would take the advantage to take some close up pics. and here they are.

[alex]

Nice spider. They are pretty venomous, right?

[pandinus]

ooohhhh yeah.

[spider]

LOL, Put your hand closely on top of one tell us all about it.0_@

[pandinus]

after you, spider. i don't want cosmetic surgery. if you would like a more detailed discussion about the danger of these spiders, click here. (http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=28208)

[Stardust]

wow...these are venomous sia.... :eek:

[cichlidsman]

how big are these?

[pandinus]

pretty small actually.

[Stormcrow]

Gorgeous wasn't she? Now, prize do you mean by size? If so measure the legspan and let us know.

[oldworldspiders]

I have a mature confirmed female currently in stock and two eggsac, one currently hatching. They are georgeous specimen that deserve alot of respect, I haven't witness mine capture it's prey but I would like to know how dramatic it is if at all. I also have many Blacks, now those are fun to watch eat.

[alex]

I would never keep that thing.

[Longbord1]

u better freeze her so her abdomen won't shrink so stick her in the freezer!!

mike

[David_F]

Nice female Pandinus. Too bad you lost her but living in KS there are plenty more to be found.

I have a mature confirmed female currently in stock and two eggsac, one currently hatching. They are georgeous specimen that deserve alot of respect, I haven't witness mine capture it's prey but I would like to know how dramatic it is if at all. I also have many Blacks, now those are fun to watch eat.

I have a mature male L. reclusa that I've been keeping for a few months. He doesn't eat very often but when he does it's amazing to watch. The last time was a 1/8-3/16" cricket. The spider ran in and bit the cricket a couple times and then backed off. The cricket died within a minute or so.

[Stormcrow]

Yeah, Recluses are hardcore opportunistic ambush predators. But they are painfully timid even to their own destruction according to one site I found. Even crickets have pounced on these spiders and prevailed, however likewise, crickets can prey on any invertebrate especially when the creature is at it's most vulnerable -- moulting, well fed, etc.

Black Widows have one of the most awesome displays of predation I've ever witnessed in the animal kingdom. I have some tenacious L.hesperus that will even crawl down to the substrate surface in pursuit, spin around once the cricket is cornered, raise their last pair of legs and let loose sticky strands of silk on prey item. But the most part the Widow usually lies still in it's cobweb, waiting for the prey item to reveal it's location via tripwire silk lines, once that happens the spider flies into action, which results instant lunch or a game of cat and mouse which the dumb crickets or any misfortunate prey item become unknowing participants. But if you have a Widow in a relative small containment, then usually the live food is instantly caught by the silk with little or no trouble.

[Invert Nerd]

there are L. Reclusa all over my home. i find myself doing a rescue mission at least once a week, to save one from the wrath of my girlfriends shoe. she just dosent apriciate mother natures clean up crew. anyway, sorry for your loss