Ventral Sexing Help

[Steph Harrison]

This is the best pic I could get of the underside of "Emily" the B. Emilia - could someone who knows these things better than I tell me, does "she" need a name change or is Emily just fine?

Thanks in advance

[vincent winyard]

hi steph it's hard to say for sure but looks possible female. the only way to be 100 percent sure is to wait until the spider molts then put a photo on here of the inside of the molt and im sure it will be a lot easier to determine the sex of your t. i don't know how big your spider is but if there's little hooks about quater way up the two front legs on the inside and little bulbs on the end of the pedipalps then its a definite male.

[Steph Harrison]

Thanks

I could sex "her" from a moult, unfortunately "she" has twice now waited until I've gone away for a few days to moult, and by the time I've returned the abdomen has shrivelled completely . I'm sure they do it in purpose...

Emily's just passed 3 inches with the latest moult... if "she" is in fact a "he" then hopefully maturity is a good few years off.

[vincent winyard]

steph the b emillia is a slow growing t and when fully grown there not one of the largest t's out there but very nice all the same. i think they reach a leg span between 4 and 5 inches when fully grown and it takes quite a while to get there. males are sexually mature between 2 and 3 years and the females between 4 and five years. all i can say is keep an eye on your t and try and get the next molt out as soon as possible to check it out. hope this helps a little perhaps someone else might be able to give you a more accurate answer and a bit more info.

[Peter Roach]

if there's little hooks about quater way up the two front legs on the inside and little bulbs on the end of the pedipalps then its a definite male.

If it has hooks then it is a MATURE male.

I could sex "her" from a moult, unfortunately "she" has twice now waited until I've gone away for a few days to moult, and by the time I've returned the abdomen has shrivelled completely .

If the moult is dry and shrivelled up. . .not a problem. I have several moults from 4 months ago that i still have to sex.

Fill a cup or mug with tepid water and add ONE drop of washing up liquid. This will break the surface tension and allow the dry moult to hydrate.
Put the moult into the cup/mug and carefully swirl it around until it sinks (should take 5 -10 seconds) Carefully remove the moult and put it on some paper toweling to soak up the excess water. It is now ready to slowly and carefully unravel the 'skin' of the abdomen to sex it.

[Steph Harrison]

If the moult is dry and shrivelled up. . .not a problem. I have several moults from 4 months ago that i still have to sex.

Fill a cup or mug with tepid water and add ONE drop of washing up liquid. This will break the surface tension and allow the dry moult to hydrate.
Put the moult into the cup/mug and carefully swirl it around until it sinks (should take 5 -10 seconds) Carefully remove the moult and put it on some paper toweling to soak up the excess water. It is now ready to slowly and carefully unravel the 'skin' of the abdomen to sex it.

Thanks for that, Peter! I have to say, based on that, I'm pretty sure "she" will be in need of a name change, but I'll maintain a little optimism until, hopefully, I can get my hands on the next moult fresh.

[Adam Beynon - Jones]

I'm going to throw a spanner in the works and say I think it looks like it might be a boy, largely in the hope that I am proved wrong and she remains as Emily

I'm not sure if the little black patch between the book lungs is epiandrous fusillae or not, but it does look like it could be. Although as you say the spider is still small, so pehaps not very developed yet to the naked eye; plus I've only just learned about this, so I've not had much experience looking at many from that perspective so not the right person to be saying anything much either way.

Basically I still wouldn't say anything for definate until it's definate!