A. versicolor sling with no web?

SpiderInTheBath · May 28, 2015

I've had my A. versicolor sling since the beginning of April, and it has never made a web. I checked out a few past threads like this and the advice seemed to say it can take a while, but I'm concerned that it could moult soon and hit a problem -- and I'm not sure how those threads turned out, as no one ever went back to update on how their sling fared.

Mine eats well and regularly (I offer food every 3 days or so and remove it if it's not taken within 15 minutes), and is drinking/energetic (it made a break for it the other day, even). I have it in a cross-ventilated 250ml tupperware with coco-fibre substrate and a silk plant leaf for climbing on.

The temperature is 70-72F.

I moisten the substrate on alternating 3 day schedules, but I am wondering if I am not being generous enough with the watering; the enclosure is always bone dry when I open it to do it again. Having said that, I'm also wary of over wetting it. It likes to drink water drops from the sides of the enclosure, so it gets "misted" in the sense that I put a couple of drops up for it to get if it wants them.

Is the fact that I've seen it drinking this way often a sign that the enclosure is too dry? Is there anything else I may have missed? Any insight at all would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Storm76 · May 28, 2015

Provide a waterdish for that T first of: That way the humidity stays at the same level as long as that dish is filled, instead of waning and waxing all the time which it is with misting. A pic of the enclosure would help, although I wouldn't be surprised if your T simple doesn't think it's enough to anchor webbing onto perhaps? How small is the sling we're talking about?

The waterdish would also eliminate the need to moisten the substrate.

SpiderInTheBath · May 28, 2015

Thanks for the reply -- I was under the impression she was too small for a water dish, but will absolutely give her one if it turns out not to be the case! I had considered drilling irrigation holes in the bottom of her container, then sitting it inside another wider, shallower dish that I could water into so that the moisture seeped up into the substrate, too, though I'm not very experienced in these things so I've been putting it off/swithering about it for a while.

I'm not misting the substrate -- I use a syringe to inject the water below the surface, and spray a couple of drops on the side because she seems to enjoy it; she runs around in it and sucks up all the little drops. I'd feel awful if what at first seemed characterful and amusing was actually a sign of dehydration though, so I definitely want to get this right.

Here are some pics, I hope my hand is enough of a size comparison! I've never measured her but I think she's around 1-1.5cm including her legs.

I thought maybe the size of the enclosure might be part of it, but I'm not sure. She has no issue finding food and certainly seems to use the entire thing.

Poec54 · May 28, 2015

Storm76 said:
Provide a waterdish for that T first of: That way the humidity stays at the same level as long as that dish is filled, instead of waning and waxing all the time which it is with misting. A pic of the enclosure would help, although I wouldn't be surprised if your T simple doesn't think it's enough to anchor webbing onto perhaps? How small is the sling we're talking about?

The waterdish would also eliminate the need to moisten the substrate.

+1. Water dish is needed. There shouldn't be holes in the lid; that lets out humidity. They should be in the side only for cross ventilation. My versicolor all have silk sheets; young ones have even started spinning them within minutes of being put in a new deli cup. Maybe with a water bowl and a solid lid yours will feel inspired to spin a home.

BobGrill · May 28, 2015

Poec54 said:
+1. Water dish is needed. There shouldn't be holes in the lid; that lets out humidity. They should be in the side only fro cross ventilation. My versicolor all have silk sheets; young ones have even started spinning them within minutes of being put in a new deli cup. Maybe with a water bowl and a solid lid yours will feel inspired to spin a home.

Mine usually take a couple days. I guess yours are just hyper.

SpiderInTheBath · May 28, 2015

Thanks guys, I'll add a water dish and adjust the lid and see how I go. Much appreciated!

---------- Post added 05-28-2015 at 06:29 PM ----------

Just to quickly update, I changed the lid and she's already webbing! It took some time to find a shallow enough dish so it was a couple of hours before I could add one. It must've been draughty.

Thanks again

Poec54 · May 28, 2015

SpiderInTheBath said:
Just to quickly update, I changed the lid and she's already webbing! It took some time to find a shallow enough dish so it was a couple of hours before I could add one. It must've been draughty.

Ah ha! Silk requires using bodily fluids, and in an overly dry cage, they may not want to expend something in short supply. Apparently it has nothing to do with being 'hyper.' Maybe Bob need's to adjust the humidity on his Avics too, to get them spinning faster...

BobGrill · May 28, 2015

Poec54 said:
Ah ha! Silk requires using bodily fluids, and in an overly dry cage, they may not want to expend something in short supply. Apparently it has nothing to do with being 'hyper.' Maybe Bob need's to adjust the humidity on his Avics too, to get them spinning faster...

I'll try that.

awiec · May 28, 2015

Poec54 said:
Ah ha! Silk requires using bodily fluids, and in an overly dry cage, they may not want to expend something in short supply. Apparently it has nothing to do with being 'hyper.' Maybe Bob need's to adjust the humidity on his Avics too, to get them spinning faster...

Agreed, I keep minimal holes in the cage as maintaining a healthy microclimate is very important to this genus. I after a rehouse mine start spinning within the hour and my versicolor even made a dirt curtain for the first time in 2 years.

Ellenantula · May 28, 2015

Well, I'll try anything for my 'failure to thrive' A diversipes, so now I am trying increasing moisture. And I just found a few pinhead roaches and crix in my A diversipes sling enclosure that I *thought* she had eaten. Yes, I have also tried pre-killed pinheads. So apparently she hasn't eaten even 3 times since getting her 6-8 weeks ago. She hasn't webbed (well, she made a tiny miniature web on the leaf she lives on). Her pitiful little web is nothing like a funnel web. I can't figure her out. She's under an inch (maybe 1/2" or 3/4" ??) She looks about the same size as my A avic when she was a little sling in this very same enclosure). A avic webbed the mess out of it when it was hers, ate well, drank from her water dish -- A avic is huge now and thrived well. And yeah, there is a water bowl kept full in there for A diversipes. I know I will lose this little sling. Won't eat, won't drink, won't moult, won't leave that blasted leaf she stays on. Frustrating and sad. :-(

Storm76 · May 29, 2015

Glad to hear the little T started webbing - if Avics start their silk retreat it's a good sign and one that their settling in to their cage. Good luck with raising that one!

SpiderInTheBath · Jun 23, 2015

Just wanted to bump this thread with an update - my sling just recently had its first successful molt in my care, and, while it hasn't webbed as much as some others I've seen, it's definitely built a little spot to sit in after I followed the advice in this post. I figured it was worth putting this positive note up here for anyone else having the same issue -- thanks again, guys!

Ultum4Spiderz · Jun 23, 2015

Sometimes they don't make webs until ready to molt. Thats how my A Avic behaves.

Poec54 · Jun 23, 2015

Ultum4Spiderz said:
Sometimes they don't make webs until ready to molt. Thats how my A Avic behaves.

Some Avics are like that, but versicolors usually make silk sheets quickly, and seem lost until they have them. Even slow-to-spin species like A metallica have spun in a short time for me when I provided them with enough anchor points.

Ultum4Spiderz · Jun 23, 2015

Poec54 said:
Some Avics are like that, but versicolors usually make silk sheets quickly, and seem lost until they have them. Even slow-to-spin species like A metallica have spun in a short time for me when I provided them with enough anchor points.

Why is it none of my pokies web except during molting? There camouflage is so good they don't need webs?

Pokie Master · Jun 23, 2015

Ultum4Spiderz said:
Why is it none of my pokies web except during molting? There camouflage is so good they don't need webs?

A lot of mine are like that. To begin with they really aren't a high webbing species. They prefer usually to burrow when young and even some adults will still burrow. They prefer retreats such as cork bark rounds, back side of bark slabs, and so on. They usually only web while eating, molting, or laying eggs.

BobGrill · Jun 23, 2015

Pokies don't web much compared to many other arboreals.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

Poec54 · Jun 23, 2015

BobGrill said:
Pokies don't web much compared to many other arboreals.

Some spin more than others. All seem to do their most prolific spinning as youngsters.

BobGrill · Jun 24, 2015

Poec54 said:
Some spin more than others. All seem to do their most prolific spinning as youngsters.

I noticed that with my younger ones.

PS: Poec, I tried to send you a PM, but your inbox is full.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

A. versicolor sling with no web?

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