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Acanthoscurria:
   Para mongo zebra (A. fracta) x0
   Giant whiteknee (A. geniculata) x6
Avicularia:
   Pinktoe (A. avicularia) x2
   "Goliath pinktoe" (A. "braunshauseni")
   "Big purple pinktoe" (A. "Bolivia #2")
   Ecuadorian wooly (A. huriana)
   Yellow banded pinktoe (A. jurenesis)
   Whitetoe (A. metallica) x4
   Venezuelan redstripe (A. minatrix)
   Ecuadorian purple (A. purpurea) x2
   Peruvian pinktoe (A. urticans)
   Antilles pinktoe (A. versicolor)
Brachypelma:
   Curlyhair (B. albopilosum)x0
   Michoacan orange (B. baumgarteni)
   Mexican fireleg (B. boehmei) x2
   Mexican redknee (B. smithi)
   Mexican redrump (B. vagans)
Ceratogyrus:
   Straighthorned (C. cornuatus)
Chilobrachys:
   "Blue chevron" (C. fimbratus)
Chromatopelma:
   Greenbottle blue (C. cyaneopubescens) x5
Citharischius:
   King Baboon (C. crawshayi)
Cyclosternum:
   Costa Rican tigerrump (C. fasciatum)
Cyriopagopus:
   Malaysian earthtiger (C. thorelli)
Ephebopus:
   "Blue fang" (E. cyanognathus)
Grammostola:
   "Brazilian redrump" (G. actaeon)
   "Brazilian tawnyred" (G. mollicoma) x0
   Brazilian Black (G. pulchra)
   Chilean rose (G. rosea) x0
   "Chaco golden stripe" (Grammostola sp.)
Haplopelma:
   Cobalt blue (H. lividum) x2
Heteroscodra:
   Togo starburst (H. maculata)
Hysterocrates:
   Camaroon red (H. gigas) x2
Megaphobema:
   Columbian giant redleg (M. robustum)
Nhandu:
   Brazilian red (N. carapoensis)
   Brazilian black&white (N. coloratovillosus)
   "Hi-white" morph (N. coloratovillosus?)
Pamphobeteus:
   Brazilian pink (P. sp. "platyomma")
Poecilotheria:
   Sri Lankan ornamental (P. fasciata)
   Salem ornamental (P. formosa)
   Fringed ornamental (P. ornata)
   Indian ornamental (P. regalis)
   Redslate ornamental (P. rufilata) x2
Psalmopoeus:
   Trinidad chevron (P. cambridgei) x0
   Suntiger (P. irminia)
   Panama blond (P. pulcher)
Pterinochilus:
   "Usambara" orange (Pterinochilus sp.) x0
Stromatopelma:
   Featherleg (S. calceatum)
Tapinauchenius:
   "Orange treespider" (T. gigas) x0
Theraphosa:
   Goliath birdeater (T. blondi)

True spiders:
   Bold jumper (Phidippus audax)
   "Tan jumping spider" (Metacyrba undata)
   Wolf spiders (Lycosa sp.?)

Myriopods:
   Florida blue centipede
     (Hemiscolopendra marginata)
   Giant Peruvian centipede
     (Scolopendra sp. "gigantea robusta")
   Red head centipede
     (Scolopendra heros castaneiceps)

Insects:
   Camaroon mantis
     (Sphodromantis sp.)
   Madagascan hissing cockroaches
     (Gromphadorhina portentosa)
   Lobster roaches
     (Naphoeta cinerea)
   House crickets
     (Acheta domesticus)

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November, 2000

Jump to day: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 27, 28, 29, Most recent entry

November 1, 2000:
MOLT! The P. regalis molted today, and boy is it huge. It will need a new cage for sure, probably a 5.5 gallon. The next molt should be on around 12/15.

There are LOTS of spiders getting skipped during feeding time because they're premolt, so there should be lots to report over the next few weeks. I would love for boots to finally molt, but I think she's at least a week off. I can't believe the P. cambridgei hasn't molted, it's been in premolt since what seems like the dawn of time.

The T. blondi is not eating, and I don't know why. It's not skinny, but it's hardly plump. My only guess is that it's gearing up for an "emergency" molt because the last molt perhaps didn't go as well as it would have liked.

November 2, 2000:
MOLT! The P. cambridgei finally molted today and seems to have grown quite nicely. I say finally even though it came before my predicted date because it seems like it's been waiting to molt for freaking ever. The next molt should be around 12/10.

Also, it seems that the P. rufilata (both) have stopped eating already...

November 3, 2000:
I retrieved the molt of the P. cambridgei, and it appears to be male.

November 4, 2000:
MOLT! I was gone the entire evening last night and didn't check on the spiders until this morning, but it looks like A. purpurea #1 of all things molted! I'm guess it was late yesterday based on its condition now. I really didn't expect that at all, and it seems that its most recent intermolt period was 12 days shorter than the previous! My prediction of 12/3 for its next molt will be simply a wild guess and is not based on my formula at all.

Update (5pm): MOLT! The P. formosa is molting as I type this... Next molt according to my magical prediction scheme should be on 12/15.

Update: Looks like it made it through fine. I retrieved the molt, and again it appears to be male. Also, the B. smithi is very premolt and should go very soon.

November 5, 2000:
MOLT! The B. smithi began molting a little after midnight. My hope is that it actually puts on some size this time.

I moved the C. thorelli into roomier quarters today and got some pictures. It looks like it has nearly its adult colors already. I was also able to get an accurate measurement using the pictures I got, and it seems my guess of 2¼" was right on the nose. It's just gorgeous.

Also, I discovered that the C. cornuatus had a window into its burrow. I can see that it molted for sure, but it's been eating, and I don't have any idea when it occured, other than that it must have occured during the month of October!

November 6, 2000:
With all the excitement of molting going on and coming up and stuff, I've hardly been paying attention to feeding and other events. The A. avic resumed eating a couple days ago, and the P. regalis came out begging for food only 4 days after its molt. Curly #2 has been trying to burrow, but its substrate will not cooperate. I'll probably be moving it to a larger cage soon anyhow.

The H. maculata had managed a pretty good mite infestation, so it got moved to a new, better ventilated cage. I couldn't find the soldering iron at the time I made its cage so it didn't have the vent holes in the sides. Also, the new A. versicolor, H. maculata, A. huriana and lots of other spiders are now in premolt. I brought boots into the bathroom when I took a shower today in the hopes that the burst of humidity will trigger her molt or at least provide some benefit for her. She's gotta molt soon and when she does, I think I'm gonna try to find a male.

November 9, 2000:
Nothing much new on the molting front. I'm going to try feeding speck again because I'm no longer convinced he's in pre-molt, as he's reopened his web (partially). Everyone else continues to fast...

The S. g. robusta is proving a much better eater than the redhead ever was. I've given it the option of baby roaches and it seems to like those quite well. It also doesn't leave any mess at all and eats everything in its entirety.

I moved the T. blondi into a 10 gallon aquarium I had lying around. I got some pictures while I was at it. Though it's not quite 5" yet, it will quickly be big enough to justify the large cage. With current space considerations, I think the P. irminia no longer justifies a 5.5 gallon and will be moved to a 2.5. The P. regalis will be moved into the vacated 5.5 after a thorough cleaning.

Update: MOLT! A. purpurea #2 molted today, keeping with its trend of following #1 by a few days. I also did the moves mentioned above. It went fairly smoothly with just the sorts of protests I expected from each spider. Actually, the irminia wasn't as aggressive as it has been in the past, so it was a pleasant surprise. The regalis is bigger than I thought, and in fact, is substantially bigger than the ornata (though the ornata is close to a molt and should overtake the regalis substantially). I measured it at a solid 5½".

November 11, 2000:
MOLT! The A. braunshauseni molted, which of course was of no surpise. It's getting big fast, so I may be suspecting that it's male. The colors are awesome. I retrieved the molt, and it appears to be male, but I'm not totally confident in that.

November 12, 2000:
MOLTx2! The P. ornata nd P. rufilata #1 molted today. The ornata is getting huge.

Update: MOLT! The A. minatrix also did its thing.

November 13, 2000:
The A. huriana and A. versicolor #2 look like they could molt any time. Boots STILL is in premolt and should go soon. Curly #2 and T. gigas should go any day as should Speck. The H. maculata, P. fasciata and P. rufilata #2 are the old world arboreals currently in premolt... I don't think the V. platyomma is far off.

Update: MOLTx2! One of the H. gigas (which will be heretofore be referred to as #1) molted, and it looks as though Boots finally molted as well! When I got boots's molt, she ran out of the web and I was able to measure her at a bit over 5". Also, examining the molt (which I pretty well botched when I grabbed it), she may actually be a he (not mature if she is). I wish I hadn't screwed up the molt so bad. In any case, I've heard that this species gets to be generally bigger than 5", so I'll wait for another molt. I also got a bad batch of hairs between my fingers when I was examining the molt. ARGGGG!

November 14, 2000:
MOLT! P. rufilata #2 cheerfully molted this morning.

Update: MOLTx3! The H. gigas, T. gigas and V. platyomma all did their thing today as well. That's four consecutive days of molting, 9 molts in the last three days, and 16 molts in the first 14 days of this month!

November 15, 2000:
MOLT! Dang, the moltings don't stop. A. versicolor #2 molted before I got up this morning.

Also, I have the opportunity to obtain a male H. lividum, so I'll asking on the arachnids mailing list for tips on how to breed them...

Update: MOLTx2! This is getting rediculous. Speck and the A. huriana molted today, which amounts to like 19 molts already this month and 12 in the past four days.

November 17, 2000:
Well, the moltings seem to have stopped or slowed down at least. I'm only expecting Curly #1, the C. fasciatum, the H. maculata and P. fasciata this month, some of those may wait until the next month even.

Also, I did get that male cobalt (a friend had him molt out into maturity about two weeks ago). I set up a 10 gallon aquarium as a "love nest". I put in a removable plexiglass center panel that divides it right in half. The panel has a bunch of ventilation holes so that the male and female can "smell" each other and get used to eachother before being allowed to mate. The panel extends from below the substrate to the bottom of the tank all the way to the top so they can't burrow or get around it to get at eachother without me allowing them to.

I moved them into the cage last night, which was fun of course. The male was fairly calm about it, considering what species he is. I chased him out of the burrow in his old cage, cupped him and put him down in the new cage, no problem. I left the cup over him so he couldn't be the targets of an attacks if the female decided to go on a rampage.

The female was out and about, as she freqently has been for the past couple weeks. When I opened the cage, she turned to face me, which she doesn't normally do. The male's cage had been next to hers, so she may have known what was going on. From the look in her eyes, I could tell she was plotting to kill me... I wanted to cup her, but she was between the water dish and the wall, so I couldn't. I carefully snipped the bits of webbing from the water dish and slid it away from her with the forceps. She was a bit snippy, but nothing serious. I quickly cupped her and she struck several times at the inside of the cup. I slid a lid underneath and carefull lifted her out. The whole time she's thrashing away, nearly knocking it out of my hand. I set her down in the new cage, and she continued to thrash. I slid the lid out, and had to jiggle the cup a bit to get her to let go. I quickly lifted it away, and she bit the nearest object, the cork shelter, with a resounding CRUNCH. She held on until she was satisified it was dead.

They both seemed to adjust to the new homes rather quickly and each had done a small amount of digging and webbing by morning. Also, this morning, I saw the male working on his first sperm web, so he'll be ready to go whenever I am. I want the female to get comfortable before I introduce them, but we'll see if they start drumming before then.

Also, I apologize for not uploading more pictures recently. This weekend I plan to take lots of them, and I already have quite a few that are ready to upload, so expect a big update.

November 18, 2000:
MOLT! Curly #2 finally molted. Didn't seem to grow as much as it usually does.

Also, I've decided to add a breeding section to talk about my breeding observations, so more detailed updates on what is going on will be posted there. Currently, the male seems to be wandering at night and hiding in his retreat during the day. Also, the female has dug a rather nice burrow and spends her day in there. She's also come out at night to investigate her new neighbor. I haven't seen any drumming, but I have seem what might be considered interest.

Update: MOLTx2! The C. fasciatum and P. fasciata molted late this evening. That should just about take care of the molts for a while. The s. g. robusta might be going soon though... I decided to wait until at least tomorrow to attempt breeding the cobalts.

November 19, 2000:
Well, today I got off my butt and took photographs of lots of the spiders that are most in need of photographic updates. These include: P. formosa, A. avicularia, A. braunshauseni, V. platyomma, T. gigas, B. smithi, Curly #2, P. cambridgei, A. minatrix, P. rufilata #1 and #2.

A couple notes about each: It seems to me that the P. formosa is the most skittish and most defensive of my pokes. The A. avic has much much more color than I expected from seeing other people's pics of this species (though I do realize there are many color morphs and variations). I'm quite pleasantly surprised. It sorta looks like the A. braunshauseni now, though its carapace is more green and its legs are more blue, it's abdomen isn't quite as bright and its back legs don't have red hairs. The A. braunshauseni looks alot like A. metallica, but sorta lighter in overall color, and the abdomen has lots of red, as do the back legs. Quite lovely. The V. platyomma has some spunk now and has started to use its hairs.

The T. gigas has lived up to its reputation as speediest T. I thought the pokes were fast, but this guy absolutely takes the cake. What is really amazing is that it starts running and just doesn't stop. It's rediculous. Other speedy types do quick bursts (< 1 second), but the T. gigas just keeps crusing. It might not be able to keep up the initial burst speed, but it keeps going at a pretty darn fast pace.

The B. smithi does have hints of its adult color, but it's still pretty bland. Curly #2 looks like a curly hair now instead of a non-descript spiderling. It has also started to use its hairs.

The P. cambridgei has its personality now, at least partially. It went into a threat posture a couple times while I was getting it out of its cage. No slapping or biting though. It seemed to calm down eventually. The A. minatrix is quite a skitty little thing, wouldn't really calm down. The P. rufilata actually seemed fairly calm, though they had their speedy moments. From the pictures, it looks as though the abdomen and carapace markings on the two are slighly different, so I may be looking at two different sexes after all. It could just be some slight variation that occurs normally because of their slightly different size, or maybe the time from the molt, but it's really too early for me to tell anything for sure.

Also, tonight is the night for love I hope. As soon as the male begins his wanderings, I'll take out the divider and see what can happen.

Update: OH MAN! Success! The mating went as well as I could have hoped. I will try them again after he makes another sperm web to be doubly sure, but wholy cow! It was the coolest thing ever. I'll post all the details under the breeding section.

Also, MOLT! the A. urticans molted. This was not totally unexpected because it hasn't been eating, but it wasn't nice and fat like I'd like. It seemed to grown nicely though.

November 20, 2000:
Well, I finally got around to reserving a domain name, so now welcome to www.bighairyspiders.com. I wanted avicularia.com but it was taken by a bunghole namesquatting place.

Also, I took boots out and got some pictures and gave her cage a complete cleaning. It needed it pretty bad. I'm in the process of uploading all the new pix, so those should be in place over the next day or so. There are lots and lots and lots.

November 20, 2000:
MOLT! The H. maculata molted today.

November 21, 2000:
I finally got around to uploading all the new pictures. There are 32 of them in the recent pictures section. I'll try to migrate them to the various other individual spider pages over the next few days. I've still got some more pictures to take, including the P. regalis, P. ornata, P. fasciata and C. fasciatum.

November 27, 2000:
Nothing much to report... Some more molts should be coming up with the beginning of December, so updates will probably be more freqent. I have finished the updating of the individual pages for each of the tarantulas whose pictures I've recently uploaded. I'm already getting behind in the pictures again, so hopefully I'll have another update of those for sometime this week. I plan to take new pictures of the P. fasicata, P. regalis and P. ornata, C. cornuatus, C. cyaneopubescens, the Cobalt's burrow, and maybe the "Usamabara" and C. fasciatum.

November 28, 2000:
MOLT! The C. thorelli molted sometime last night (probably after midnight), which was not unexpected at all. Its burrow is really really small, so I don't know how it did it in there. It's too big to even come close to stretching out in there now.

November 29, 2000:
Raul seems to be not eating. I've been waiting and waiting and waiting for her to go into premolt, and she may have finally. She's been looking like she's about ready to bust for a long time because she's so darn fat.