Rose burrowing?

bucketoc · Oct 1, 2014

Hey guys, I got a chilean rose and put in some coconut fiber. I didn't have enough cash on hand to put in a lot, so theres only a few inches in the bottom of her tank.
This has me worried that she is going to take a spill and hurt herself, so I want to go get more.

The weird thing is, she has dug out a couple holes near the edges of the tank and likes to sit in them and webbed them up a bit.
Is this a sign of an impending molt? Is it burrowing? I thought that was rare for this species.

My question is whether or not i should put in more substrate. I'm worried about her safety but I dont want to interrupt whatever it is she is up to.

Biollantefan54 · Oct 1, 2014

G. porteri/rosea adults typically don't burrow in captivity. Pics would help. If there is less than 1.5x the length of the spider from the substrate to the lid, I would add more.

Beary Strange · Oct 1, 2014

Is it young or an adult? It's extremely normal for young ones to burrow and while not as common, threads pop up from time to time asking this exact question so clearly, it's not unheard of for an adult. As far as digging into the sides, I wouldn't be concerned, sometimes tarantulas just dig. I have several that do just this. They'll dig in a spot, then move on and dig in another spot, sometimes filling in the first one first, sometimes webbing it. Get the substrate issue fixed asap. What you can do to minimize disrupting her acclimation too much is remove some of the webbed dirt and set it to the side, then add the new substrate and place the webbed dirt back on top of it.

Akai · Oct 1, 2014

your tarantula's safety should always come first. please take a pic of your set up. we will guide you the proper way. Welcome to Arachnoboards!

miss moxie · Oct 1, 2014

bucketoc said:
Hey guys, I got a chilean rose and put in some coconut fiber. I didn't have enough cash on hand to put in a lot, so theres only a few inches in the bottom of her tank.
This has me worried that she is going to take a spill and hurt herself, so I want to go get more.

The weird thing is, she has dug out a couple holes near the edges of the tank and likes to sit in them and webbed them up a bit.
Is this a sign of an impending molt? Is it burrowing? I thought that was rare for this species.

My question is whether or not i should put in more substrate. I'm worried about her safety but I dont want to interrupt whatever it is she is up to.

Webbing in corners makes me think of males making sperm webs. +1 for pics.

ratluvr76 · Oct 1, 2014

miss moxie said:
Webbing in corners makes me think of males making sperm webs. +1 for pics.

I've also seen I think two threads where someone's tarantula laid a surprise egg sac shortly after getting it home.. and they were in the corners too....

Akai · Oct 1, 2014

where did you get your G. rosea? take a pic of the front legs if you can. like a profile shot would be best.

miss moxie · Oct 1, 2014

ratluvr76 said:
I've also seen I think two threads where someone's tarantula laid a surprise egg sac shortly after getting it home.. and they were in the corners too....

Ah yes, the surprise sack. I told a friend i bought some 'baby tarantulas'. She looked horrified. "Did one of your tarantulas have babies?!" I explained no, I bought them to raise. But I mentioned the infamous surprise sack. She went back to looking horrified.

bucketoc · Oct 1, 2014

Did I attach these right?
These aren't good pictures. Lightings bad.
Pretty sure its an adult female.

miss moxie · Oct 1, 2014

I'm no expert, but it looks female to me. They aren't the best pictures, but it doesn't look like it has tibial hooks or bulbous pedipalps. I also don't see very much webbing in those corners.

Someone with more experience will chime in though. Sometimes Ts just do 'weird' things.

Storm76 · Oct 2, 2014

Some T's just do that being T's. Could've also been she sensed movement there. Is the cage sitting on something like a stereo, or anything causing vibrations? Also could've been a feeder she was digging for. I don't see reason to worry, except that that T probably needs more substrate considering the height of the tank I see in the pics.

Rose burrowing?

bucketoc

Arachnopeon

Biollantefan54

Arachnoking

Beary Strange

Arachnodemon

Akai

Arachnobaron

miss moxie

Arachnoprince

ratluvr76

Arachnodemon

Akai

Arachnobaron

miss moxie

Arachnoprince

bucketoc

Arachnopeon

miss moxie

Arachnoprince

Storm76

Arachnoemperor