"They get to this nice, reflective color on their exoskeleton. They'll look a lot prettier," said Chandler Peters, an entomology keeper at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. The females, who can live up to 30 years, never leave their burrows. And if the males snoop around too much under the earth, they could suddenly end up in another spider's burrow and become a meal, Shillington said."
"By approaching a female's den from the outside, they are able to signal ahead of time to the females that they are lovers, not fighters, Peters said. They'll send vibrations and tap on the edge of her den. As she gets closer, he'll use hook-like structures on his front legs to restrain the female from immediately attacking him. As they wrestle, the male sticks a sperm package on her underside."
"Male tarantulas are typically low on fuel during mating season, as they aren't eating or drinking at all, according to Dallas Haselhuhn, who studied Colorado brown tarantulas during his graduate program at Eastern Michigan University. But after the deed is done, they have to muster what energy they can to move quickly to the next female. Because if a female spider is feeling particularly testy or hungry the male will become fast food."
Each mid-September to mid-October, mature male Colorado brown tarantulas leave their burrows to seek females after reaching sexual maturity. The departures are not one-way migrations; males briefly abandon underground homes while females remain in burrows and can live decades. Males approach female dens from the outside, signaling with vibrations and taps, then use hook-like front-leg structures to restrain females and transfer a sperm package. Males often fast during mating season and are low on energy, forcing quick movement between mates and exposing them to predators and risk of being eaten.
Read at www.npr.org
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