I am writing in response to the request you had for a selective breeding opportunity of the Tooth Cave Spider. Here is the complete scientific classification of the Tooth Cave Spider:
- Kingdom Animalia
- Phylum Arachnida
- Class Arachnida
- Order Araneae
- Family Leptonetidae
- Genus Neoleptoneta
Although different from most spders, the Tooth Cave Spider's adaptations are very good. since it lives in a cave, they are also very different from other spiders. Three of these adaptations are:
- The Tooth Cave Spider is a Troglobite. In other words, it lives its whole life in a cave. A great way the Tooth Cave Spider has adapted to this is having the ability to go along time without food, because it lives in an environment where food is not very easy to find.
- Another adaptation is that the Tooth Cave spider has longer legs, and is white, because it doesn't need to camoflauge from preditors. the long legs help alot because they have to call through the cracks and crevices of the caves they live in.
- The most fascinating adaptation by far is the fact that these spiders have little or no eyesight. This may seem strange, because spiders are known for their eight eyes. however, when living in a cave, it is easier to get eye injuries, so these spiders have no sight at all. Instead, they are very sensitive to vibrations.
For our selective breeding experiment, I have chosen the Tooth cave Spider's white body as a way we could make money. Alot of people are fascinated by spiders, but are afraid of them when they are alive. I think we can set the body of these uncommon spiders inside of a paper weight, and make a considerable amount of money in museum gift shops. However, because these spiders have such long legs, we can use our selective breeding experiment to breed the ones with shorter legs, so they will fit better inside the paper weight.
To carry out this experiment, we will have to do the majority of our research in Texas, because that is where the Tooth Cave spider is found. I figure we can go to the caves one day, get at least four or five of the spiders, and breed the ones with the shortest legs overall. I don't really know the mating habits of this species, so it may take some time and extensive research to learn their mating habits once they are no longer in their own habitat. However, after the research is complete, we will breed the short-legged spiders in our laboratory for 2 months. We will use the spiders from the next generation with the shortest legs for our marketing purposes.
After we take these measures, it may just happen that we create a species of Tooth Cave Spider that can not survive in caves. I think the new spiders will adapt to the light outside a cave environment, and it may be too dangerous forthem to live in caves. However, if we release them into the wild with their white color, they may be quickly eaten by other insects, animals, and birds. If this is the case, we might produce a whole new endangered specie.
After some thought, I must say that even though this sounds like a wuick money making idea, it doesn't seem too wise. the adaptations of the Tooth cave Spider just won't help when released from our lab into the wild. I don't think it is wise for a species to begin its life endangered. I suggerst that we find a different way to make money in museum gift shopes, with a species more sutiable for our experimentations.
Sources:
NatureServe Explorer
Welcome to the Underground
http://www.blm.gov/education/00_resources/articles/caves/caves1.html
