Trapdoor Spider
October 17, 2009
My wife found this spider in our kitchen sink. She was too scared to pick it out even though it was dead. After picking it out I was fascinated by its size. My question is if this spider is dangerous/venomous? Thank You.
Erik T.
Mount Washington, Los Angeles

California Trapdoor Spider

Hi Erik,
Thanks for informing us about another Mount Washington sighting of a Male California Trapdoor Spider.  All spiders have venom, but only a few are harmful to humans.  Either the venom is too mild or is not of sufficient quantity, or the fangs of the spider cannot penetrate human skin.  We know of no reports of anyone being bitten by a California Trapdoor Spider, but that does not mean it cannot happen.  The California Trapdoor Spider is not a species that is considered harmful to humans.  We are happy to hear that there must still be a healthy population of this magnificent spider in the Mount Washington area where continued development is reducing the amount of open space.

2 inch black spider with brown abdomen
October 15, 2009
This spider crawled over my wife’s foot. It’s about 2 inches long, shiny black with a brown slightly furry abdomen. It’s mid October here in LA and we just had a rather large rainstorm, the first of the season, possibly it tried to escape into the house? We let him go right after we took the picture.
Syd
Los Angeles California

Male California Trapdoor Spider

Hi Syd,
This is a male California Trapdoor Spider, Bothriocyrtum californicum.  Each year, the first rains of the season trigger the mating instinct of the male California Trapdoor Spider who leaves his burrow and wanders in search of a mate.  This species is sexually dimorphic.  Sadly, the male spiders often wander into backyard swimming pools and drown.  Interestingly, our Mount Washington Los Angeles neighbor Jeanie left a tupperware on our porch last night.  There is a male California Trapdoor Spider in that tupperware.  We were waiting for morning light to take our own photo to create a posting.  According to Charles Hogue, in his awesome Insects of the Los Angeles Basin, “Trapdoor spiders are novelties in the Los Angeles Basin today, although they were commonplace a few years ago.  They were even collected and sold as curios in the Los Angeles area at the beginning of the twentieth century.  Their rarity now is another example of human expansion destroying the habitat of a local animal.  The spider prefers to build its nest on sunny south-facing dry hillsides, which in the spring bear a thick covering of short grasses and low herbs.  Such areas are becoming increasingly rare in the basin (they are also the habitat of our local tarantulas, and both types of spiders can be found living on the same hillsides).”

Male California Trapdoor Spider

Unknown big spider in coastal Oaxaca State, Mexico
Mon, Mar 16, 2009 at 11:06 AM
We found this unfortunate drowing-victim in our pool one December morning at our place in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, in Mexico – we’ve spent lots of time down there, but have never seen a spider like it, so maybe it only comes out at night? I couldn’t stop looking at it, it is just so cool!
The first photo is how we found it: upside down at the bottom of the pool, just thought this would be good for scale.
The next two photos are (obviously) just close-ups of the mystery spider.
Hope you can help!
Jess
Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Mexico

Mexican Trapdoor Spider

Dear Jess,
We believe this is a Trapdoor Spider.  There is a related spider in California that frequently drowns in pools after the winter rains.  The rains trigger the mating urge in the male Trapdoor Spider who leaves his burrow in search of a mate.  Sadly, swimming pools often seem to be on the spider’s route.

Mexican Trapdoor Spider

Huge unknown insect from Brazil
Fri, Jan 16, 2009 at 3:18 AM
Thanks for identification, and here are the spider pics. Imagine this making
a run for inside you house. This is not one of the spiders I would want to
swallow in my sleep. Part of the fun of living somewhere like brazil is all
of the new things you see everyday (that and the pretty girls in bikinis)
Dave
Florianopolis, Brazil

Tarantula

Thanks for sending us your Tarantula image Dave. We are posting the image of you with the Tarantula for scale. Regarding your comment about swallowing the Tarantula, we heard in the past from entomophagy  expert David Gracer that Tarantulas are edible once the stinging hairs are singed off.  Finally, we always thought swimsuits were optional in Brazil.

Tarantula with Dave for scale