Take a look at my previous post with the pics of the dead male and the smaller male, the "one that got away" LOL (the one I sent back). Of course, I've seen males the size of the smaller one that have a lot more red. Since he was definitely a mature male (his femoral pores were huge) I wondered whether he would get much more red. How long after maturity do redbacks continue to get more red, or does it simply depend on the population or individual?

Unfortunately, like a fish attracted to a shiny lure, I focused on the "shiny" more colorful male. I ignored my gut instinct that something might be wrong with him and instead, I explained his inactivity away by attributing it to him still being cool right out of the box. However, after I pulled out the larger male from the bag, and as I was checking him out, the smaller male, still in the bag, came crawling out alert and active, cocking his head, checking out his surroundings and flicking his tongue. It made me think of a dragon coming out of its lair. I was immediately drawn to the smaller male's activity level and "personality". I hated to send him back, but I was quick to do so, primarily because I had ordered the larger, more colorful one, but also because I simply wanted to hurry up and send him back so I could get the female I had ordered. A lesson learned I guess to be more patient. I should have held on to both males for even a single day because by then, it was obvious there was something wrong with the bigger male. Unfortunately, the smaller male has already been sent out to someone else. Since Nick mentioned that neurological problems can result from using products to get rid of mites, I've asked the guy whether he used any such products, but haven't heard back from him yet.

Perry

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