Because THIS thread had over 3000 views, and because I am over the moon, and because they are bred locally, and because I am seriously passionate about M balfouri, I decided to do this update on last years disappointment.

A few friends to be thanked:

Ceratogyrus - Always good ear, always advice on Baboon spiders and their habits.
HeteroScuderia - Nice input and friendly conversations on the issue of breeding these spiders.
Hendrijs - Without the article by David Štastný you sent me, I would still be throwing away babies.

I must also mention that I still have two males on breeding loan. One belongs to Legion and one to Oceanblue. They mated on a rotation basis, we will be in touch.

(Template courtesy Magnificent Duke)

Genus: Monocentropus
Species: balfouri
Date female moulted last: Can't recall, 2010.
Date male matured: Can't recall, 2010.
Last mating date: Various matings, although unnecessary as one is enough.
Mating behaviour: There is noting difficult about mating M balfouri. Females are keen, males are a bit nervous initially, but then the party seems to be never ending. They mate as long as it takes me to finish a bottle of wine.
Tank conditions and temperatures before mating: I keep them dry, then I keep them even dryer, and then some. They seldom see water, nor do they have water bowls. In the enclosures with plants, I only water the plant, maybe once a month, and only slightly.
Feeding schedule before mating: The normal few fat female crickets a week.
Feeding schedule after mating: As above, until she stopped feeding.
Date egg sac produced: 22 or 23 or 24 April 2010.
Date egg sac removed: Not removed.
Development time of nymphs: About 30 days.
Total number of spiderlings: Yet unknown

Additional notes:

I made a lot of mistakes last year. Removing the egg case from M balfouri seems to be a fatal mistake, and I did it 10 times during the 2010 "breeding cycle". :blush:

This is an image of some mating last year. I gave up on dating the matings, purely because there are just to many pictures to order properly. There are some new folks that might just be keen to see...



The image below is of one of last years sacs I stupidly removed after 21 days. The current female constructed a sac deep down the burrow, so it was impossible to photograph. This just an illustration of what a M balfouri sac looks like.



The female closed of the entrance to her burrow about a month before constructing the sac. I placed the enclosure close to a heat source, which dried it out to the extreme. Although I was curious, that enclosure was not touched or disturbed in any way. Some remains of her last moult was carried out prior to her sealing the burrow entrance. I left it there with a dead cricket or two and a roaming roach.

The entrance to her burrow circled.



As burrowing spiders sometimes excavate right up to the glass, so did this female. By peeping into a small opening with a torch, I was able to see the egg case, took a few pictures without luck.

On Monday (23/5/2011), I went to see what she was up to, but could not see the egg case. The female was sitting with her abdomen towards me, in a "feeding" position, raised up from the substrate. My first thought was that she is eating the eggs, the words I used to tell her what I think are not suitable here.

On closer inspection, I detected some movement on the sides of the burrow and in her webbing, and this is what I found.



It is impossible to know how many babies are sharing her nest, one only knows that they have between 20 and 40 at a time. These spiderlings are VERY small. I am not even sure what instar they are, because from what I hear and read, there is an extra life stage in there somewhere, perhaps between nymph and first intsar.

They will stay with the mother for at least three months. When she breaks the surface to start hunting to feed the bunch, I will update this thread. I will not feed the babies as I learnt that she takes care of them.

I trust the info, trails and errors I made will prevent others from wasting time and keep this magnificent Baboon alive and well in the hobby.

All the comments, good wishes and "mojos" are appreciated... and Mr Walker "Blue" certainly appropriate.

I know there is a rival blue arboreal that has achieved "cult" status in the hobby, but this particular Baboon spider from that tiny spec called Socotra is royalty in my opinion.

To illustrate, a female basking in the sun, mated and hopefully, the next mother.

These images are as close to their natural appearance in good light as it can be taken with just the flash, and faint winter sun...





Taken a while back...

I have said to numerous persons placing orders, this is the best opportunity to study some parental behavior, perhaps some aspects thereof that has never been noted before. This is as close to what would would happen in the wild, affording a perfect chance to document the entire process. I will not be in a hurry to sell these babies, yet there will be some on offer.

To put some hearts at rest, I have three (perhaps a forth) female that has been mated and surely will drop again this year. Now that some secrets have been revealed, chances are good there will be more closer to the end of the year.

As far as price goes, they will be sold as healthy youngsters at R1200 each, or R1000 for "lots" of five and more. This is a reasonable price IMO. More importantly, the more offspring goes into the hobby, the cheaper they will become in time, and that would ultimately be the best for this unique and magnificent spider.

this is the best opportunity to study some parental behavior, perhaps some aspects thereof that has never been noted before

Well, as I said...

I went to inspect the female and her brood this afternoon (29/5/2011). Although inside her burrow, and very difficult to get a handheld camera to focus on what you want to (FFS), I was able to see the female with a clutch of babies on her chelicerae and/or mouth parts. There were not many, estimate about ten. The rest were all over the inside of the burrow, but the clutch on the female was a surprise. I have also noticed some on her legs, clambering about...

Is she eating them you may ask? Of what I have learned from lots of reading, I seriously doubt it...

The picture is not crystal, but the yellow abdomens of the babies and the figure of the mother unmistakable... Believe me, they are there as described.

Sunday 5/5/2011

As usual, I went to inspect the progress in my little room (04H15).

The mother has broken the surface and webbed up a HUGE area outside her burrow. She did not exit where I expected (which I should have expected), but chose a corner of the enclosure.

About a week ago, I carefully opened her enclosure and added sufficient decorations around the area where her burrow used to be. I knew when she came to the surface, she would require anchorage for her webbing and a safe haven for the young. The cork bark I added is now webbed up, and knowing these spiders, she will web it over completely in due course.

Being "underground" for months, I knew she would be starving, so I added a cricket which she took almost immediately. As she crabbed the cricket, she exposed a number of young that must have been hiding under her. As she went back down the burrow with her catch, the young followed, presumably to be fed.

To be continued... :woohoo:

The babies are venturing out of the burrow regularly now...

This is the mother up against the side, one sling on her abdomen, the others at the burrow entrance, yet others inside the burrow.