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Name: Lesa
Location: N/A
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Question:
We are a home schooling family. We found a garden spider outside my bedroom window. She has a cocoon above her web hanging from the eave of the house. I would like to know if I could retrieve it without disturbing her would the spiderlings hatch if placed in a 10 gallon fish aquarium (empty of course). We have used the aquarium for several projects. We can see the cocoon but not real close up.We have watched her killl her prey as well as eat it. I would love for my children to be able to observe up close the spiderlings hatching. As well as them spinning webs at an early age. We would then let them go in the yard. Also what would we feed them.I would appreciate any help.


Replies:
HI, Garden spiders are not thinking or adaptive animals and they will not respond to an artificial environment well. Without the environmental stimuli that spiders are innately programmed to respond to, they will not survive. You may be lucky and create an environment to allow for the hatchings, however, the young will compete in the closed habitat and probably not survive. They are genetically program to disperse.

Science is a learning experience, so go ahead and give it a try. Feed them live insects if a web appears.

Steve Sample

Why not just leave it where it is, and let nature do its thing? So often when we want to "help" nature out we do far more harm than good.

John Elliott


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