Plurrrr

Wed 05 May 2021

Ecdysis of Acanthoscurria geniculata

In the afternoon I noticed that Adam's Acanthoscurria geniculata was upside down. It was about to molt soon. It had webbed a mat on top of its burrow and a plastic leaf the previous night.

Acanthoscurria geniculata upside down on its silk mat
Acanthoscurria geniculata upside down on its silk mat.

The spider had been lethargic for weeks, a possible sign of an upcoming molt (ecdysis).

Acanthoscurria geniculata, right, and its exuviae, left
Acanthoscurria geniculata, right, and its exuviae, left.

When I checked again on the tarantula, slightly over 4 hours later, it was resting upside down next to its molt (exuviae). It's best to leave the spider in peace as much as possible during this delicate process.

Acanthoscurria geniculata freshly molted
Acanthoscurria geniculata freshly molted.

In the evening I carefully removed the exuviae. This can be used to determine the sex of the tarantula. The tarantula was bought as a female and now I could confirm this by examining the inside of the abdomen between the first pair of book lungs.

Spermathecae of a juvenile Acanthoscurria geniculata
Spermathecae of a juvenile Acanthoscurria geniculata.

In the above photo, taken with an iPhone 6S and macro lens the spermathecae are barely visible. But good enough to confirm that this is indeed a female.

Now the spider has to harden out before it can get its first meal. Best is to wait about 2 weeks.