New Agressive Behavior

[CourtneyG]

Every day and night I go to turn the lights on or off for my reptiles and I alwayse check up on my P. metallica, she is right near the controls for the lights, I make sure everything is good from what I can see of her enclosure and her if she is out and about.

But last night when I went to turn the lights off and check in on her she changed her behavior of either not caring for my presence or hiding away (if she is out of her hides) She came out of her tube hide and was rearing up at me and lunged at the glass a few times before settling down at the entrance of her tube hide.

For enclosure specs. Note the picture is when I moved her in and a bit outdated. The humidity is high near the bottom of the enclosure and she has extensive webbing around her hides. Also there is now more moss making the little log on the back wall closed off for a top entrance only. Also the tube fell off and I turned it over, going to try and reattach it when I do a substrate change and I can get her out of it.

She also ate on monday and was well fed.

Any reason for this sudden behavior change, it's not like she is not used to my presence. Would like to know why and what I need to change to calm her down if I am the reason. I can maybe add more hanging stuff? The traffic flow is also very quite by her, it's just me in there normally twice a day and never for long.

 

[SasyStace]

I wish I knew something that was helpful- maybe she's still hungry, maybe she was just startled this time.

 

[Tomoran]

I've noticed that my pokies tend to go a bit crazy at times when caught out in the open, more so than my other species. I've observed mad, often directionless scrambles around the enclosures, and unlike other species that will run to their hides/den and stay there, the pokies will repeatedly go in and out like they are too startled to realize that they could just stay put. I've had a couple instances where the confused spider started striking at seemingly nothing at all before settling down again. Metallica's are also known to be very photo sensitive. so it doesn't take more than a slight change of light to send them running. This could be what you're seeing.

How has her behavior been after that incident?

 

[Entity]

My spiders tend to get a bit more grouchy when they are in premolt. and sometimes they r just buttholes. I have a b. smithi that threat poses me all the time....whataya do. lol

 

[CourtneyG]

It might be premolt grouchy-ness, she looks to be molting soon.

When I went to turn the lights off she was hidden away.

 

[Scoolman]

Sounds like she has settled in and is defending her home. They also get more defensive when nearing a molt, as the others have mentioned.

 

[CourtneyG]

She was out this morning when I went to turn the lights on and did not react to me at all

 

[Tomoran]

She was out this morning when I went to turn the lights on and did not react to me at all

It's possible that you just startled her or caught her on a bad day. I did that with my normally docile M. balfouri, and she had a similar. Or, as others said, she might just be cranky due to premolt.

 

[CourtneyG]

It's possible that you just startled her or caught her on a bad day. I did that with my normally docile M. balfouri, and she had a similar. Or, as others said, she might just be cranky due to premolt.

The thing that was weird was that she was in her hide and then came out. But that could be her just defending her territory and maybe some grumpyness being close to molt.

 

[MassExodus]

The thing that was weird was that she was in her hide and then came out. But that could be her just defending her territory and maybe some grumpyness being close to molt.

Spiders moods can change very quickly. And their behavior can change for no apparent reason at all, and stay that way for a long time.

 

[Entity]

Spiders moods can change very quickly. And their behavior can change for no apparent reason at all, and stay that way for a long time.

hmmm.....i think my wife has a little spider in her. lmao

 

[Kymura]

hmmm.....i think my wife has a little spider in her. lmao

ROFLMAO ~!!! As do most of us....

 

[Meludox]

hmmm.....i think my wife has a little spider in her. lmao

Because men never experience mood swings, right.

 

[Scoolman]

Because men never experience mood swings, right.

Of course not.......

 

[Entity]

on the contrary....i suffer from PMS...... whenever my wife gets it I suffer. lmao.....ill be here all week dont forget to tip ur waitress! lmao

 

[CourtneyG]

Very much enjoying the new direction of this conversation.

 

[Entity]

lol....all it takes is one smartass to get off on a tangent...lol ....sorry

 

[Meludox]

Thanks.