Sie Schlaue Deutsche Frau... we are all alike. :whistle:

I am not convinced nutrients are produced by dedicated glands. My gut (no pun) feeling is that it is regurgitated stomach contents, albeit fluids.

RippeR, I can't take any credit for contributions to conservation, yet. Not to long ago, these magnificent spiders were extremely difficult to obtain, and yes, the population on Socotra does not seem to be overwhelming (according to reports). Once you have the hang of this, they are not difficult to breed, and if I can/could make a very small contribution by telling my story in public, it will/should benefit the species in the long run. I have been obsessed with them for a long time and kept the faith, now it's your turn...

Us Germans... said in jest... but many a true word is spoken in jest...

Yes I did, but there was no solids involved. The young would hang from the females mouth area like grapes. This happened occasionally, the spiderlings visibly increasing in abdominal size over a few weeks.

I insert an image (although an oldish one) to illustrate. The image is fuzzy because it was taken through some webbing and into the dark of the burrow. The actions are clear though...



For how long she will feed her young is still a question without an accurate answer (from me at least). I suspect the "weaning" will be gradual. The young would probably still share food with the female and with each other, perhaps "hunt" one prey item and feed from it simultaneously. The purpose of the communal is to document this in some detail. I would not be surprised if they remain together as a "family" into juvenility and only disperse to set up home during later stages of development.

Check out this video: Mom and babies. Plus I love the Rammstein, yeah!!!

Glad to report that the babies from the third sac started emerging on Sunday. No idea how many at the moment. Whatever, some will go to Oceanblue because his male did some rounds there also.

Now all the sacs I had are empty at last... I hold thumbs for Cerats female sitting on one still...

These are the babies from the third sac. They are just as healthy as the previous batches, yet not as numerous. No idea how many there are, yet.

In my mind, this is one of the traits that separates M bafouri from a vast number of other Tarantulas, dedicated parental care. There might well be other species that do the same, I have not witnessed it first hand like I have with these.