Breeding Haplopelma lividum

[Jamie Cooper]

I recently acquired a Haplopelma lividum which moulted at the weekend. I had a pretty good idea it was female and the moult confirmed it. So I would really like to try my hand at breeding. I know it's not an ideal species to start with, but I'm going to do as much reading as possible over the next couple of months in preparation.

I've read a few online breeding reports, but couldn't find very much. What would really help is some input from others who have bred this species, with or without success. If anyone could share their experiences or add any information that would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks, Jamie.

[andy hood]

lividum was the first tarantula species i successfully bred a few years ago. I had no problem with the mating, although the male shot across the spider room floor afterwards hehe , i had a lot of slings as a result too

[Ray Hale]

Hi jamie I have bred lividum a number of times and have full breeding notes. PM me and I will send you a copy. I would post them up but I dont have them on disk anymore. And I will have to retype them.

Ray

[Jamie Cooper]

Thanks Ray, I have sent you a PM.

Andy can I ask, how big was your female? Number of eggs? Temps/humidity, etc. And anything else you think is worth mentioning.

Many thanks guys, Jamie.

[Lisa Ashforth]

I mated mine last year, she ate the male and then sealed her burrow for 6 months. I was hopeful but then she emerged with a shiny new skin grrr

[Jimmy Burridge]

Alright jamie
can you keep me updated on this
All the best and hope it all goes well
cheers jim

[Jamie Cooper]

How unfortunate Lisa! It must be so frustrating to lose a male and not get a sac.

Certainly Jimmy! I think I'm going to have a go at this around December. It will give me a few weeks of reading up to do, plus I have to locate a MM.

Jamie

[Jamie Cooper]

Update:

Just bought a MM from The Spider Shop to arrive on Friday!

Jamie.

[Jamie Cooper]

MM arrived this morning! At first I feared the worst, there was very little signs of life, but I warmed him up and after an hour or so he was full of it!

So I guess my plan of action is to give him 2 - 3 weeks to settle into his new home and build a sperm web. Then introduce him to my female who I'll make sure is well fed.

Temps are ranging from 69 - 77. I'm not sure how high the humidity is, as I don't have a hygrometer, but the peat/vermiculite sub is nice and damp and both tanks have water dishes, so I'm guessing it's OK.

There are a couple of things I'm a little unsure of that I hope someone can help me with. How do I identify a sperm web with a burrowing species? Is it made inside or outside the burrow?

Also, how do I condition the male? Is there any specific requirements or do I just care for him as I would normally? I ask this question mainly in regard to feeding.

I tried to get a good photo of him but he wasn't in a very good position. So I think I'll just have to wait for the main event to get a good picture

Any information is very much appreciated, thanks. Jamie.

[Jamie Cooper]

Update:

Well I tried pairing them up just over a week ago, but neither seemed very interested at all. In fact I had doubts that my female was ready. She's just over 4" and looked very small compared to the male. So I decided to remove the male. Perhaps next year for her. However I really wanted the MM to fulfil his potential and I had a couple of people interested in loaning him so I have sent him out on loan.

In the mean time, I was a little peeved that I would have to wait until next year to have a go at this. Especially with all the reading I had done in preparation. So I decided to buy a breeding pair from The Spider Shop. They arrived just over a week ago and have spent the last 7 - 8 days or so settling in. Today I decided to pair them up. Both had settled in so well I didn't see the need to wait any longer.

I decided to do this in the bath. Everything appeared to go very well. The male slowly walked over, the female responded and they did their thing for about 5 - 6 minutes. When they separated, I witnessed a little bit of the frantic rubbing the females do, but not a lot.

So I have a couple of questions to ask. Should I put the male back in with her? If so when?

Should I alter my feeding schedule? (1 large cricket per week)

Any advice is greatly appreciated. I'll put some pics up later.

Jamie.

[Lee Corless]

Yes, I was the same, I just paired mine up. My smaller female seemed more interested in him though than my large female, they were tapping at each other for days. The first pairing went well, Then after 3 days I tried again and got a definite insertion. So I did not see the need to pair him up with her again. So later on in the week I tried him with the larger of the 2 females and all was going well, then on the second attempt he got ate. I have videos in the video section of all the pairings. (second parts are being uploaded as I type).