Toodling Tarantula

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

What kinds of amazing things? Hopefully not escape from their cages.

they will escape if you don't keep the tank secure, of course.

Amazing things....they build wonderful 'houses' depending on the species....some burrow, some make walls for their 'house' from web nets and then stick stuff all over the net to camouflage it. When they shed their skin (to grow) they have to flip over and lie on their backs and they look like they are dead for an hour or two while they struggle inside and wriggle to split out of the old skin. The new skin is very soft and it slowly expands and hardens...they are extremely vulnerable during this process. The old skin is a PERFECT replica of the tarantula in every detail....every single hair, the shiny eye covers, even their fangs...the whole skin is a perfect replica of the spider...only hollow! A cool thing to do which I have done twice, is to get the old skin (which is usually lying in a crumpled heap when the spider is done moulting) and then steam it so it is flexible again. Then you use delicate tweezers to slowly arrange it back into it's natural shape. If you work carefully and slowly and prop parts up with matchsticks while they dry again into position, you can then recreate the whole 'fake' spider in a natural pose again. Once dry it is stiff and you can remove the props and display it. Looks like a real preserved tarantula. Let me try to take a photo of one such mounting I made from a discarded skin....