How Does the Barking Spider Survive?

How does the Barking Spider survive? The barking spider has a scientific name of Selenocosmia stirlingi. It is a large species with a hairy body and legs. How does the Barking Spider survive? Just like other spider species, the barking spider has two body segments, two palaps and eight long crab – like legs. They use these body parts to move about in their surroundings, defend against predators and also capture prey. In this article, you’ll learn how does the Barking Spider survive?       

How Does the Barking Spider Survive: Adaptations

How does the Barking Spider survive? Barking spiders are one of the most primitive types of tarantula species called Mygalamorphs. It means ‘mouse – like.’ Primitive tarantulas have gill – like lungs that require humidity. Barking spiders spend most of their time just hiding under the burrows they’ve created and that’s because they are built for digging.

What a lot of people don’t know is that they don’t literally produce a (dog – like) barking sound. It was just called like that because they sort of whistle whenever they are threatened. They do this through rubbing rows of spines on their legs against the spines on their lower jaw area. The ‘barking’ noise they make typically deter predators. So in a way, this is how they defend and protect themselves.

Survival Instincts

How does the Barking Spider survive? The deserts that they typically live in are very susceptible to flash floods which can be quite challenging for them since they live under burrows with leaky roves. What they do when this happens is that they use their hairs because it helps trap air bubbles during flash floods. It also prevents them from drowning, thanks to their air pocket. 

Barking spiders also have brush feet that have claw tufts. They also produce a film of oil from their special organ. It gives them the ability to climb over smooth vertical surfaces without falling because it is like a suction cup.

Diet

How does the Barking Spider survive? As mentioned earlier, barking spiders dig burrows, and they often pick a spot that’s either sandy, or has a loamy type of soil which can be found in arid areas. Their diet is consists of mainly carnivorous meals such as lizards, frogs, insects, and sometimes even birds. The predators that they watch out for include owls, eagles, large reptiles, and large mammals like foxes and wild cats.

Insects usually make a tasty treat for barking spiders. When a prey is near the entrance, the spider can sense the step of its wandering prey. The vibrations of the radar system through the webs they set up signal the whereabouts of the prey. They can also detect the potential size of it. Most often than not, barking spiders are a sit and wait type of predator. They will wait for the prey to come very close to them before striking. However, there could be instances that they will stalk their food a bit if they are really hungry.

Size

When it comes to their size, female barking spiders are generally larger than males. The former can reach a body length of up to 6 cm. They have a leg span of around 15 cm, and their fangs typically measure around 1 cm.

Lifespan

How does the Barking Spider survive? When it comes to their lifespan, females typically live up to twenty years. On the other hand, males usually die right after mating with a female because they often get killed and eaten by her. If the male happens to be lucky and get away after mating, they usually have a life expectancy of around 5 years. In order for a male spider to find a female to mate, he uses his sense of smell. Male spiders follow the smell of a female’s pheromones. When female spiders are ready to mate, they lay down a scented silk in order to attract the males and lead him to her residence. When the male spider finds the female, they typically court them through tapping their legs.

Reproduction

When it comes to reproduction time, after summer rains are usually the mating season for these spiders. The female will entice the male to come into her burrow to mate. If successful, females get to lay about 50 eggs into one sac several days after the mating. These are then stored in the burrow. The eggs are also protected using a silk that has a tough cover to prevent predators or destruction.

Baby barking spiders, also known as spiderlings, are known to feed on the insects that are provided by their mom. This indicates that even a predator like a spider has some degree of maternal care. Spiderlings leave home about a year after hatching.

How Does the Barking Spider Survive: Liquefaction Process

How does the Barking Spider survive? The barking spiders of Australia belong to the family Theraphosidae. They’re also known as bird – eating spiders and this is because they sometimes eat young birds. Sometimes they take away chicks from their nest but it’s not always part of their diet.

Barking spiders just like other tarantulas don’t have teeth or jaws so they can’t chew their food. They use their venoms to paralyze their prey, and liquefy its internal body. They suck the food out of their meals.

Other Barking Spider Species

The Barking Spider is real and it actually has a couple of species. One of the most common barking spider species is known as the Queensland Whistling Tarantula. This type of spider creates noise that is similar to barking/ whistling.

These and many other types of barking spiders live in many parts of Australia. Their ability to stridulate is what they are known for. Arachnids and insects are similar when it comes to producing a whistling or barking sound. For instance, if you hear crickets chirping at night, this is an example of stridulation. For barking spiders they do a similar thing, only louder. We hope in this article, we answered your question, how does the Barking Spider survive?