# Spider hatching today



## Tim/Robin (May 27, 2009)

We had our first Pyxis arachnoides arachnoides (Spider) tortoise pip today! 167 days since it was laid, 96 days since diapause broken. Here are a couple photos. Will add more once she makes her way out completely. Maybe her eyes will be open then too. It's a big day at our house!


----------



## BigBiscuit (May 27, 2009)

Congrats. I bet it is really exciting to see the little critter make it's way out.


----------



## jlyoncc1 (May 27, 2009)

Way cool! Congrats you lucky ducks!


----------



## Yvonne G (May 27, 2009)

Tim and Robin: I must apologize! I was suffering under the impression that you were newbies to tortoises. So I went back to your introduction last July and I see that you were just new to the forum! You already had a nice collection of tortoises. No wonder you are having such breeding success with the hard-to-hatch species. You've been taking care of tortoises for some time.

Congratulations on your new spider baby. Are there many more eggs coming? Or is this a specie that only lays one egg per clutch?

Yvonne


----------



## Tim/Robin (May 27, 2009)

emysemys said:


> Congratulations on your new spider baby. Are there many more eggs coming? Or is this a specie that only lays one egg per clutch?
> 
> Yvonne



One egg each clutch. Long, complicated incubation. We have several females and thus have more eggs in the incubator. These are quite precious since they are slow to reproduce and increase the population size. Pyxis arachnoides arachnoides are listed as *critically endangered *(habitat destruction, illegal collection as pets and people eat them).


----------



## Millerlite (May 27, 2009)

congrats, always great to see you hatching new babies, spider tortoises are very cool tortoises


----------



## Isa (May 27, 2009)

So cute  Congratulations.


----------



## egyptiandan (May 27, 2009)

Great pictures Tim & Robin  The little one looks great.

Danny


----------



## PATMAN (May 27, 2009)

Congrats to you on a job well done! I here incubation is difficult.

Can't wait to see the little one totally out of it's shell!


----------



## Crazy1 (May 27, 2009)

Congratulations on your new baby spider.  It is just precious.


----------



## pyxistort (May 27, 2009)

Congratulation. It's good to see more spider tortoise babies...


----------



## shelber10 (May 27, 2009)

Congratulatoins what a adorable little tort


----------



## Meg90 (May 27, 2009)

wow! that is REALLY impressive! Your family must be so proud!


----------



## Candy (May 27, 2009)

Can not wait to see him/her when she breaks out all the way. Will be looking forward to the pictures.


----------



## Tim/Robin (May 27, 2009)

Here she is...





















And here is the mother...


----------



## Jacqui (May 27, 2009)

Simply beautiful...both mother and hatchling. Think I should get over my fear of Spiders...


----------



## shelber10 (May 27, 2009)

Wow what a pretty tortoise


----------



## desertsss (May 27, 2009)

That is amazing. Congrats to you and the mother! Both are beautiful.


----------



## Meg90 (May 27, 2009)

oh wow! This baby will be a wonderful addition to your collection! Do you have any threads up with pictures of your entire collection? Or one of your incubating room/nursery? I'd love to see a thread on either topic....your setups are so impressive, and your ability to hatch such fragile species is simply amazing!

I'm really happy to have been able to witness something like this.....you can't find pictures like this through google!


----------



## Tim/Robin (May 27, 2009)

Meg90 said:


> oh wow! This baby will be a wonderful addition to your collection! Do you have any threads up with pictures of your entire collection? Or one of your incubating room/nursery?



There are tons of pictures on our blog. The address is in our signature. Robin loves to take photos of them all and shares many on the blog. 
As for this baby, she is already spoken for.  However, at this point we cannot fathom getting rid of a single Spider babe.  They are a labor of love. The incubation is rather complicated. 
As for the incubator, it is a home-made one, using a styro-foam tropical fish shipping box and a light bulb, thanks Danny. I did have to add a Helix thermostat, as I could not calibrate the other thermostat. I was getting too much fluctuation in temps. It really is very simple. 
We really feel a key to our success this far, is time. We commit a lot of time and attention to our tortoises, it is a family passion.


----------



## Laura (May 27, 2009)

Are its legs ok?


----------



## Tim/Robin (May 27, 2009)

Laura said:


> Are its legs ok?



All four are fine. This baby had just come out of the egg when the photo was taken. Imagine being crammed into a rubbermaid bucket for months. You would probably feel a bit curled and your arms/legs would probably be stiff. 

Eggs aren't quite like little beds for them. More like a sleeping bag...that's rolled up and tied really tight...with them still in it!


----------



## Stazz (May 27, 2009)

Thats a cute way of explaining it Tim & Robin !!!! WHAT A BEAUTY !!!!!!!  Congrats - I love to witness this, even though its not in person. I love to learn all these new things....i.e had never heard of a spider tortoise before. They sure are lovely torts. Congrats again


----------



## Isa (May 28, 2009)

Wow, beautiful (both the mother and the little baby). Congrats, you are doing an amazing job


----------



## BigBiscuit (May 28, 2009)

Those are some adorable torts!


----------



## baseballturtle48 (May 28, 2009)

Awesome hatchling!!! I'm so excited for you. She's a perfect little bug.


----------



## Gulf Coast (May 29, 2009)

okay now these type of spiders I wouldn't mind!! Very cute and Great job on your part..


----------



## Candy (May 29, 2009)

Thank you for sharing this with us. I have never seen a baby Spider Tortoise born. She is wonderful. I loved the update please send more when you get them. The mother is beautiful. Good job you guys and tell the girls again congratulations.


----------



## Tim/Robin (May 29, 2009)

Candy said:


> I loved the update please send more when you get them.



As if I (Robin) need any encouragement to send more photos . This month alone I have near 700 photos of tortoises on my computer (a bit of a geek I am). When the back of the neck begins chaffing due to the camera strap, you may be spending too much time with your camera.

Here is a photo today. So 2 days later and her colors have changed and she's flattened out. 





Here is the original top-view when she first hatched this week.


----------

