Egg Sac

Pulled an egg sac this week. Also have a female sitting on another, and three other females that may still drop.

2nd instar G pulchra slings

That is an American quarter for size reference. They are all taking B dubia nymphs readily and are active.

2i Spiderlings

Lots of little 2nd instar G pulchra. Just about the entire clutch has molted now.

First Appearance of 2i

First few 2nd instars emerged today. So far six have molted to 2i.

Egg Ssc

Pulled the egg sac today that Minx produced. All are 1st instar, there were about two dozen bad eggs. I have not counted the hatch out yet, but it looks very good.
She fought hard to protect her sac;  took me about 10 minutes to get it from her.

Egg Sac

Minx has produced a sac.
She was paired with Midnight(001), one of the original Fab Four, the last week of March  to the first week of April. On June 28 she went into her hide and covered the entrance with a thick layer of silk. On July 2 I notice she had removed the thick layer of silk from the entrance and replaced it with a much thinner layer. On July 3 I peered into her hide using a borescope camera and saw what looked to be an egg sac. On July 4 I was able to see clearly into her hide and took a few pictures. I was able to clearly see a large egg sac. I expect hatch-lings around August 19. I am definitely not the first to produce captive bred G. pulchra in the U.S., but this is a rare event in the U.S.; be sure you are ready to get yours when they are ready to be shipped. Be sure you check out my Tarantulas For Sale page, and watch for when the spiderlings get listed.

 

New Page added

I just added a Tarantulas  For Sale page. Please take a look, this is where I will post G. pulchra for sale along with a few other species.

FOR SALE

Despite my lack of activity, I am still here and working with my black beauties.
 I currently have a limited number of G. pulchra slings available. Please leave a post in the Guest Book if you are interested and I will get back to you; be sure to include an email so I can contact you.
I have had a few people ask if I sell mature females; No I do not sell my big girls, nor do I have any plans to in the future.
I currently have 5 mature females, 4 juvenile females, 2 mature males (they are playing the dating game now), 5 juvenile males,and a limited number of slings.

Molt Sequence, Sable010

 These are a few pictures from the July 23, 2012 molt of Sable010. I found her on her back at 0107 hours and began watching and taking pictures through the night. She was finally free from the exuvium at 0927 hours, taking a total 8.5 hours+ to complete the process. I missed the initial flip and the final return flip.
She moved off her molt mat for the first time just this evening; nearly a month after her molt.

Sable on her back

She is a big girl

Finally free

Resting after a long night

Stretching, and showing off her massive fangs

Not the greatest pics, but here she is the next morning.

Growing and Pairing

I have been able to determine gender on a few of the spiderlings, and will continue as each one molts. Most are 5th instar now with a few going into 6th instar; they are about 2" leg span now. As I get more gender I.D.s and the temps cool for safer shipping, I will offer some of the spiderlings for sale, soon. Keep watch on my blog.

Minx, peeking out after her recent molt.

Sable and Minx are now becoming more active, after their recent molt. I will be looking to pair them both again, in the hope that they will produce sacs.

Sable's canyon fortress.

Ebony has been actively modifying her trench fortress, I am hoping this activity is a sign she is preparing for a sac.

Sable010

Well, no sac from Sable. She has decided it is time to molt. After about three weeks I will pair her again. My thought is, if she is carrying eggs, I can pair her again and she will still be able to lay a viable sac. If not, then I will begin working on next years sacs. I will have 5 mature females come this fall; one is under right now, and the other is very brown, and should be ready to go under soon.

Sable010

Fat as ever, but no sac, yet. This girl is definitely teaching me patience.

Sable(010) is still just sitting on her silk mat, taunting me. IS she going to molt, or make an egg sac? She is driving me nuts. I check on her a dozen times a day, hoping to catch her in the act of laying, and hopefully get it on video.
Tic toc  tic toc tic toc........

Sable(010) MF preparing to lay???

Sable has been working on a large thick silk mat. She is not premolt, so I am optimistic that she may be preparing to make a sac.

Hello everyone,
Thank you for your interest and comments on my blog. I know I don't post nearly as often I should, but life often inhibits my pursuits.
I have had quite a few requests for G pulchra spiderlings and juveniles. I do currently have 17 spiderlings that are about 1" leg span right now (Captive bred by Alfredo Inocencio, hatched 14Aug11). I may consider selling some of them after I am able to determine gender on each of them, which may take another molt or two.
I am still waiting on my three females to decide conditions are right for producing an egg sac. Sable(010) is looking particularly plump. I expect she will be the first to produce a sac. If I do get a successful sac soon, I will have spiderlings available after they reach 2nd insatr, hopefully before winter sets in.

Sable(010)

 Sable(010) looking very plump