Anyone know what kind of spider this is? He’s on my back deck and thinking of trying to tie a similar pattern. Oh and he is very small, like maybe 1/4" total length. I do like the colors though.
Any Ideas?
Skip
Is it an Orchid orbweaver?;http://www.bugsinthenews.com/Texas%20Spiders/Orchard%20orbweaver%20(Leucauge%20venusta)%2011%20August%202007%20Christine%20The%20Woodlands%20Texas.htm
Doug
It is an orb weaver of some sort, but beyond that…
These are not spiders that fish would normally be exposed to. They spin webs in openings in grass and brush and lie in wait.
Thanks guys, now back to getting ready and watching Ike come kick our tails.
Skip
CHeck out: http://www.whatsthatbug.com/index.html
I am sure you could find it there. Great website to pass the time and learn something, too.
I really really really don’t like spiders.
Jeff
On the subject of spiders…The only time I felt intense fear of a spider was on the Deschutes river in central OR. I went into a outdoor toilet, sat down, looked up and this is what I saw; (Don’t click on this Link Jeff!) http://web.princeton.edu/sites/ehs/black_widow.jpg
I probably set a world record getting out of there! LOL
Doug :shock:
Doug, Black Widows dont really deserve their reputation,
they are very timid and will only attack a human if threatened or cornered. She was more scared of you then you were of her.
Now if you come across a Brown Recluse Run don’t walk they are very aggressive!
Bill,
I googled the Brown Recluse and I saw some images of the damage they do, and…SCARY! :shock:http://www.everythingabout.net/articles/biology/animals/arthropods/arachnids/spiders/brown_recluse_spider/brown_recluse_spider.jpg Jeff, DO NOT click on this Link!
P.S. Bill, I just saw a map of the BR’s territory and the happy news is that it does not live here! The bad news is it lives in the lower mid west & southern states.
Doug
My wife was bitten by a brown recluse. It was painful and nasty.
The only time my fear of spiders (I can’t spell arachnophobia) cost me dearly was when I was about 17. I used to bread various tropical fish and sell them to local pet stores (can you say NERD?). That summer, there was a really hot chick who worked in the store. Over the summer, I was making some progress with her to the point she was actually starting to show some interest in me. To make a long story short, one day, I stopped in the store to drop off some fish and flirt with the girl. In the front of the store, they had an aquarium with a huge tarantula. I was looking at that beast thinking “I WISH YOU WERE DEAD” and wondering why anyone would think such a vile creature could be a pet. The hot chick was watching and said her usual “hello”. She came from behind the counter and stood very close to me and said something like “amazing aren’t they”. I gave some half answer to the tune of “yes they are”. (Remember, I had been trying all summer to get her to notice me).
I went to the back office to drop off the fish to the mgr and pick up a check. I then proceeded to pick up some supplies. I heard little miss pet shop behind me and once again, she was pretty close. I turned around to say something witty like “hey, you want to grab a bite to eat and see a movie tonight?”
She was holding that beast from the depths of hades in her outstretched hand and in the sweetest softest voice imaginable said “want to pet it?”.
All I could get out was a croaking screech and a school girl like squeal as I was backing away shaking my head.
Well, that was about the end of that. Miss Hottie liked spiders. I just couldn’t get past the idea of putting my arm around her in a dark place and feeling a spider crawl down my back.
Jeff
Dang, Jeff, that’s a great story.
Okay, my spider story: I had a sculpture studio south of Market St. in San Francisco (years ago), and I found a Latrodectus species in the corner. I captured it and put it in a large containter. It built its web as predicted, and I began feeding it the annoying flies that came by (very satisfying). It grew bigger and I began to do some research on this genus, and others at the library (pre-internet by about 25 years). Result: Spiders are one of the most fascinating organisms on the planet.
Fun facts that I remember from that research:
They can weave a strand of web the thickness of a protein molecule.
There have been attempts to use their silk for for cloth, but they can’t be raised in big enough numbers to make this possible. (They eat each other). However, one ambitious entrepreneur managed to collect enough silk to make a pair of gloves. Jeff, how’d you like to put your hand into one of those gloves? heh-heh
It has been documented that a black widow spider has captured and eaten a mouse just by using its web to remove the leverage of the mouse’s legs and then bite it to immobilize it.
A single web spinner produces several types of web, sticky to capture, stong and thick for contstruction, etc. It changes from a liquid to a solid by the speed at which they draw it out from their spinnerets.
Balooning is the spider’s way to distribute the species. They send out strands of web to catch the wind and when there’s enough to pull them into the air, they let go. Hence their distribution world wide, even to the most remote island in any sea.
We’re really very lucky here to not have some of the really bad boys. Check out Australia if you want some real arachnophobia. YIKES!
Back to my “pet”; I found a male and dropped him in to the container. I watched him do the dance and they eventually mated, afterwhich he became a meal (hence the name). She laid a ball of eggs which successfully hatched. I watched as she actually cared for the babies by letting them eat the insects that I supplied and she killed. She soon died and the babies ate her as well, nothing to waste.
I saved one of the babies which grew up to be another female. Repeat above story times 3 generations.
Bill
Jeff & Bill you guys have had some stories about the spiders. Enjoyed reading them.
I can’t even picture a spider eating a mouse, but that is fascinating to know!
Thanks,
Skip