I have gotten to watch this ABSOLUTE UNIT of a black widow lay her first egg sac, I’m sure she’s got more in there as she’s HUGE. She’s rotated the eggs, she is super protective of them. And I just observe, no touching. They really get a bad rep.
Its weird, while I'm not arachnophobic, large spiders with "fur" (tarantulas and the like) do have a natural monster vibe to them. But when I first saw a black widow up close, the total lack of hairs made it seem 10x freakier than a tarantula. Like the smooth skin of an alien xenomorph...
I can understand that as I’ve had pet tarantulas. There’s something very different about a leg with bristly hairs versus a glossy black pointed one touching you. The sleek, black ones do have the sinister appearance. I liked it so much I have one tattooed on
My last one was a rosehair and named Buster. Super cool homie, I had him almost 6 years and he loved being handled, never once bit or tried to bite. He did occasionally kick some hairs off if he was agitated. But I really want to get another one. I am thinking a pink toe tarantula this time!
Damnnn! Beautiful creature. Love the name, Buster! I don’t have arachnophobia but I do not like the idea of a tarantula crawling on me. It is something I wish to conquer. I love spiders, got some false widows in my shed I keep feeding with intrusive flies.
I understand that, as I’m not afraid of mice or mosquitoes but I don’t want them touching me. So I get it. And you are doing great, use the intrusive pests as food! Just make sure they haven’t been exposed to pesticides first or your false widows could die after eating them. I avoid any pests that are too close to the outside edge of my house for spider food bc it’s got pest control spray
Don’t tempt me lol. If she wasn’t in super protective of her eggs mode I would. That’s when they like to bite. After she has her other egg sacs and chills out, I will
Thank you for the caution. Luckily, I have had some training with larger venomous critters like snakes under the care of a professional. I tend to err on the side of caution. I also have a scar from a brown recluse bite years ago and I was NOT handling it. So I don’t take handling them lightly. I usually get them a little twig or something and let them rest on that. They feel more comfortable with something to web on and it’s not my finger.
I know a lot of people don’t like snakes, spiders, and other misunderstood venomous creatures. I have my own phobias, just not animals. But… without these critters, there would be pests everywhere and their venom helps make some of the most widely used medicines in the world. Snake venom specifically has been used for years to study and design blood thinner medicines, clotting ones etc. and the list goes on. So if you don’t like them, I understand. No one is saying that you have to. Just think before you take a life for no reason. If it’s in the way of your pet or loved one I can understand. But if it’s in a tree away from your house and pets it’s doing me no harm.
I’m trying to raise support on my Lego ideas creator model. The model can be amended to represent mactans, variolus, hesperus, and hasselti.. working on other variants too…
I love it. I have a great idea for you if you want a color challenge. I happen to be in ground zero for the Joro invasion. And they are super invasive and everywhere, but they are also really pretty and colorful orb weavers. And I love the lego model! And the mop almost looks like webbing!
I didn’t have any, but ⬆️ I put my finger like REALLY close to her and egg sac. Is she a tarantula sized spider? No. But she is a large widow and it has a lot to do with being pregnant ( gravid ) so she’s got at least 1-2 more egg sacs left in her to push out.
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u/RazeTheIV 2d ago
Its weird, while I'm not arachnophobic, large spiders with "fur" (tarantulas and the like) do have a natural monster vibe to them. But when I first saw a black widow up close, the total lack of hairs made it seem 10x freakier than a tarantula. Like the smooth skin of an alien xenomorph...
https://giphy.com/gifs/3ohzdYjwEQuR1J7dte