This lady has been lurking in our laundry for a few weeks, but was removed and placed outdoors after rearing up at my partner as he tried to extricate some towels from beneath her. We grew up calling Huntsman spiders Cuthbert, mornings started with "Have you seen Cuthbert today?...... ah yes in the toilet" - no action required. I am less fond of them today after my sister was bitten by one in bed, she woke to one falling on her neck - went to brush it away - and it bit her. She had to go on antibiotics to cure the bite and it really hurt.
My partner thinks he can see a monkey face in the abdomen (no, he's not taking drugs), I could see what he meant when I looked at the spider but the pictures he took don't really do it justice (I actually thought a little Chewbacca). He took the above photos whilst holding the camera above his head, heart beating
.
You can see the face in this one I Googled if you use some imagination.
I think it's sad that some people get their house sprayed for spiders every year, even if you are not fond, they do add excitement to the house (and eat flys), all those chemicals can't be good for anyone.
The Museum Victoria has great information on spiders - I gleaned this interesting information this evening.
"The male must firstly introduce himself as a mate (not food) through a series of bodily shudders and vibrations, which culminate in him tapping and caressing her. If successful, he will then proceed to mate by leaning underneath her abdomen and engaging his feelers (palps). The bulbs at the end of his palps are where he stores his sperm. He may mate for quite some time, swapping sides intermittently".
Something to look out for!
Like you, there is NO way I would spray for spiders. I am not scared of them, my boys aren't, and my husband isn't. However, my 2 year old girl is! I have no idea how or why, because we have always portrayed them as something to not worry about. She is even scared of toy spiders, and won't touch pictures of them. We had a lot of huntsmans where we lived a few years ago, and my rule was they weren't allowed in the children's rooms. Once I found one under the handle of the door of the car, ick!! We always had names for our as well as a child :)
ReplyDeleteOMG... I think I would totally freak out if there was something like that in my house! We only have one poisonous spider in this area, the black widow, and I'm sorry to say that I sprayed like crazy when I discovered an infestation under the edge of the siding a few years back. I try to be benevolent with all living creatures, but a black widow bite can kill a cat, so I'm not willing to take any chances there.
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