Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I assume that the three species, to be so divided at all, do not interbreed where their ranges overlap. Am I correct?

I have read that a mature female that has moulted for the last time may breed once then continue to lay viable eggsacs for life. So then... can a female who has not yet moulted the final time breed at all? And, does this mean a mature female who has bred will NOT breed again, or only that she NEED not do so?

Thanks for any information aloong these lines.

bill

They may interbreed, but any offspring would be sterile, so there is not a breeding population of hybrids, and the species remain distinct.

A female not yet mature, CAN be bred, but offspring will result only if she produces the eggsac before her next molt. Spiders can store the sperm( in a depository separate from the ovary) after mating, and produce an eggsac when the feel like it. If the spider is mated, and then molts before producing an eggsac, the sperm will be lost when the old exoskeleton is shed. A mature female widow that is bred, and is not going to shed again can keep the sperm stored for some time, and then produce two or three eggsacs. You see, when the male deposits his sperm, it goes into a storage receptacle, not the ovary directly. The female then can fertilize herself at will with the stored sperm, or if she doesn't, and she molts, the sperm goes out with the exoskeleton, and she will need to mate again.

I don't know if a mature, already mated widow WOULD breed or not, but she wouldn't need to. She may instead need a feed to provide protein for egg construction, so the suitor may be supper if she deems him useless. That's just speculation on my part though.