Spiders

[Chameleon Creator]

I imagine chameleons encounter spiders in the wild, but are they safe for them to eat? Most spiders have some sort of toxin and I've seen a chameleon eat a huge wolf spider before, just doesn't seem safe to me.
For that matter, is any insect that contains a toxin; is this safe? Do chameleons have a natural defense against ingesting toxins/poisons?

 

[fluxlizard]

I think you are talking about venomous, not toxin?

Wild chams eat lots of bees and wasps according to studies on wild diet.

I don't think they have a natural immunity to the venom- they are just very good at eating them with some care.

I don't know about spiders- mine sometimes get spiders in their cages and they don't seem too interested- I find out the spiders are in there from the webs and then I have to find the spider.

I was bitten once by a wolf spider. It was a lot like a bee sting but went away within hours.

 

[Devokid]

I second the eating of bees. My parents have a pumello tree in their yard in Hawaii and Jackson's are all over it eating the bees that pollinate the flowers. They also eat the spiders that are in the trees, but I'm not sure about the ground dwellers or if that is actually good for them to do.

 

[Chameleon Creator]

I think you are talking about venomous, not toxin?

Wild chams eat lots of bees and wasps according to studies on wild diet.

I don't think they have a natural immunity to the venom- they are just very good at eating them with some care.

I don't know about spiders- mine sometimes get spiders in their cages and they don't seem too interested- I find out the spiders are in there from the webs and then I have to find the spider.

I was bitten once by a wolf spider. It was a lot like a bee sting but went away within hours.

Yes venom. If they do not have some sort of immunity against venom, what do you think would happen if a chameleon was bitten or stung?
And yes, wolf spiders are big, fast and carry a painful bite lol. Hate those spiders.

 

[fluxlizard]

Yes venom. If they do not have some sort of immunity against venom, what do you think would happen if a chameleon was bitten or stung?

I don't think a lot would happen, maybe a little local irritation. Someone here on the forums posted that they believed their's was stung during feeding and the effects were not severe enough to prevent future appetite for bees that frequented the bush it was placed outside in. I think you can find youtube video of wild oustalets feasting on bees.
I posted a link to the papers published about stomach contents of wild chameleons a couple of years back here on the forums if you care to dig hard enough through my back posts to find it. Bees and wasps were the #1 food item in wild chams if I remember correctly.

And yes, wolf spiders are big, fast and carry a painful bite lol. Hate those spiders.

Well, the one that got me was a "pet" when I was a kid. The biggest one I ever saw. I was showing a friend how "tame" she was at the time I was bitten. LOL

 

[Chameleon Creator]

Lol well then, nice pet huh? I guess he showed you