Big boy gettin’ swole


Today was a big spider maintenance day. I’ve got three lines of spiders I’m raising — R (from a spider collected at Runestone park), H (from the local Horticulture garden), and M (from the Myers garage) which I’m trying to bring to maturity, so they’re getting lots of food and care, which I want to start inbreeding and generate 3 lines of related spiders so I can start assessing their variation…and then start cross-breeding. It’s going to take a while.

Anyway, down below the fold is one that’s definitely male and might be ready for mating after the next molt. His palps look painfully swole.

Male

Female

Isn’t he handsome?

What I think might be an easy way to identify individuals is the abdominal pigment patterns, like this little lady.

I just have to train my brain to be able to recognize those spots. If a spider can do it, I ought to be able to.

Comments

  1. says

    Remember, the Chief Justice of the United Kingdom was, until recently — and as the title of her memoir (forthcoming in October) proclaims: Spiderwoman! So perhaps she’d appreciate some of these goings-on…