Vietnamese bathroom spider
Location: Hue, Central Vietnam
October 21, 2010 6:26 pm
I have often seen this guy (or gal) and others like him in damp locations inside houses, in Hue, Vietnam. Legspan included, the largest ones are about 4 inches across.The legs, at the thickest section, can be up to 3/8 inch diameter, maybe more. I haven’t ever seen them in the bedroom or living room, so I take it they like moisture. I tried to post 2 photos, but kept getting a ”failed to send message, please try later” warning. The second photo showed that the spider’s legspan matches the length of a soapdish.
Signature: curious traveller
Huntsman Spider
Dear Curious Traveller [sic],
Your spider appears to be one of the Hunstman Spiders, most probably Heteropoda venatoria, a species found in warm ports around the world that was introduced to many new habitats because of the importation of bananas. They are nocturnal predators that feed upon cockroaches.
Spider (Huntsman?) in Lusaka, Zambia
Location: Lusaka, Zambia
October 21, 2010 4:11 am
Dear Bugman,
last night (around 8pm., 2 hours after sunset) I almost stepped on this spider (body size appr. 3.5 cm / 1.4 inches), which was sitting on the grass in our garden. We are located in the city of Lusaka, Zambia (Southern Africa). Currently it is dry season with the rainy season approaching.
The spider did not move for the entire time I took from discovering it to fetching the camera and taking some photos (with flash). Also placing my slipper next to it for size comparison did not make it move.
Any hints are greatly appreciated. Thank you very much in advance!
Signature: Spider-Illiterate
Possibly Wolf Spider
Dear Spider-Illiterate,
In our opinion, this appears to be a Wolf Spider, but we are not certain.
Male Brush Footed Trapdoor
Location: Queensland Au
October 21, 2010 12:22 am
Hi Guys,
We have been having heaps of rain down here and it bought this stunning male Brush Footed Trapdoor (Idiommata iridescens) to my back verandah. I didn’t find out till I got an ID that it is highly venomous in the same sort of toxicity as our infamous Sydney Funnel Web.
Signature: aussietrev
Brush Footed Trapdoor Spider
Hi Trevor,
Thanks for sending us another excellent photo of an unusual Australian species. We had not heard of any highly venomous Trapdoor Spiders, so we decided to do a bit of internet sleuthing to find some information. Our first hit, the Find A Spider Guide for the Spiders of Southern Queensland, produced your very photograph. Not much else of any use turned up.
California Trapdoor Spider (photos)
Location: Mt Washington, Los Angeles, CA
October 20, 2010 12:16 pm
Last night I found what I believe to be a California Trapdoor Spider climbing the wall near my front porch. As it’s unusual to see such a huge spider in our area I captured it rather than killing it so it could be relocated to a more suitable location. I thought I would share the photos as the one of it’s relocation shows it in pretty good detail and color. Enjoy!
~ Chris
California Trapdoor Spider
Hi Chris,
We really love California Trapdoor Spiders. You did not indicate where you live, but since our offices are in Los Angeles, we know all about the unseasonal rains that have been falling for several days now. Male California Trapdoor Spiders wander about in search of a mate after the first rains of the season. Sadly, many wander into swimming pools and drown. We are happy you rescued this guy and released him. Hopefully he will get lucky and perpetuate the species.
California Trapdoor Spider
Hi Daniel,
I did forget to include that! I live at the base of Mt. Washington at the L.A./Eagle Rock border. I’m about 2 miles from the ‘wild’ area of the mountain so I imagine this guy either got washed out or hitched a ride down as there isn’t a good habitat for him in my immediate area. He’s been happily relocated back to the Heidelberg Park area of the mountain and should find plenty to keep his attention up there! Feel free to use either of the photos I linked on your website if they will work for your purpose. Thanks for maintaining a good resource on the CTS!
Chris
Hi Chris,
Thanks for the additional information. Daniel lives in Mt Washington near Elyria Canyon, so it appears we are neighbors.
Gorgeous orange girl
Location: Leander, Texas (Near Austin)
October 20, 2010 8:24 am
Greetings,
I keep and breed tarantulas, and have a deep appreciation for ”true” spiders. With approximately 860 known species, Theraphosidae are easily identified, however true spiders continue to vex me with their variety. This beautiful girl is ”hanging out” on my deck, located in Leander, TX, about 10 minutes out of Austin. I have never seen anything besides Latrodectus with such a remarkable ventral marking. What is this lovely creature?
Signature: Tarantula Terri
Orbweaver with Prey
Dear Tarantula Terri,
This lovely creature is an Orbweaver in the genus Araneus. In the fall, shortly before Halloween, many spiders have matured and reached their full size. These impressive creatures, especially the Orbweavers, are suddenly very visible as they spin large orb webs and position themselves in the webs. They attract considerable attention. It appears the female in your photo has snared a Yellow Jacket.
Garage Dweller
Location: Milwaukee, WI
October 18, 2010 9:46 am
This guy lives in my garage. Hasn’t moved in 4 days and is my first time seeing it so, I know it’s not dead or anything. Any idea what kind of spider this is? Looking online, it may be an Orb Weaver but the markings on the back don’t match. Need to know if this is dangerous please. Thanks much!
Signature: Robert
Cross Spider
Hi Robert,
At first, we supplied you with a short responses acknowledging that this was a harmless Orbweaver, but as we pondered which letters to use for longer responses and postings, we selected your image and letter despite the blurriness of the image because there is something puzzling about your image and because the back story on the species is so interesting. We believe your spider is a Cross Spider, Araneus diadematus, a species that was introduced to North America from Europe and that is now well established in the northeastern quadrant of North America as well as the Pacific coast states. The interesting thing about your image is that the spider is not up-side-down in the web, which is the typical position. The fascinating back story has to do with the most famous Cross Spiders, Anita and Arabella, who were shot into space aboard Skylab 3 as part of a NASA outreach program that answered student questions. Anita and Arabella did weave webs in space, though the web weaving process was altered by weightlessness. Sadly, both Anita and Arabella died before splashdown, but their bodies are in the Smithsonian Institution. Daniel really wanted to see them on his last visit to Washington DC, but time did not permit. You can read more about Anita and Arabella on About.Com and you can read more about Cross Spiders on the University of Michigan Animal Diversity website. Spiders of many types, especially Orbweavers become more visible in the autumn as they mature and continue to spin larger webs. Orbweavers are harmless, though many species are large, colorful and frightening. Perhaps one of our readers will be able to contribute additional information regarding the unusual upright position your individual has taken in the web.
Update from Trevor: Image was inverted
Hi guys, I think the comment that the picture is inverted is correct. Note the deformation in the web at the back legs. When rotated you can see that the spiders weight is pulling on the strands, I have cleaned up the pic and rotated it. It appears then that there is a row of cupboards in the background with objects sitting on the bench top.
Signature: aussietrev
Cross Spider: uninverted
October 15, 2010
Humph. Pretty cool. I wonder if the bug man knows about this…
Susan Lutz
October 15, 2010
Spiders roam free at new L.A. museum exhibit
Winston Lutz
Golden Orbweaver
¶ Posted 15 October 2010 § ‡ ° Mama Mia
Location: Coryell County, Central Texas
October 11, 2010 10:00 pm
Found this large spider in the garage. Live and let live, but I prefer large arachnids to live freely outside. Silly, I know, but that’s just how it is. Was going to nickname it ”Bruce” until I noticed all the spiderlings on her back. Took a couple of quick photos, and of course this was at night and I had to use the flash, sorry. I noticed that a couple of spiderlings were jumping ship, and promptly set them all free in the garden. May they live long and prosper.
Are they Rabidosa rabida? I looked up wolf spiders on a university website.
Signature: Ellen
Rabid Wolf Spider with Spiderlings
Dear Ellen,
We concur that this appears to be a Rabid Wolf Spider, a harmless species with an unfortunate name. We slightly adjusted the levels and darkened your images a bit and the detail is quite exceptional.
Rabid Wolf Spider with Spiderlings
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