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Thread about spiders (not for the arachnophobic!)

20200611_115551.jpg

What spider is this please?
S/he roams freely around my kitchen walls, presumably stalking prey. I've not seen it spinning a web, or any web in the areas I see the spider.

Including legs, it's about the size of a 10 pence piece. Flatter than a house spider. And I notice that the fore legs face forward quite notably in contrast to the back-facing angle of the hind legs.

Could an Urban arachnaphile tell me what spider this is please?
Thanks :)
 
SheilaNaGig said:
View attachment 217173

What spider is this please?
S/he roams freely around my kitchen walls, presumably stalking prey. I've not seen it spinning a web, or any web in the areas I see the spider.

Including legs, it's about the size of a 10 pence piece. Flatter than a house spider. And I notice that the fore legs face forward quite notably in contrast to the back-facing angle of the hind legs.

Could an Urban arachnaphile tell me what spider this is please?
Thanks :)
Click to expand...


Almost looks like a huntsman. Whereabouts are you?
 
tonysingh said:
Yeah, huntsman. Almost certainly a hitchhiker from a local shop. Come in with bananas or whatever and then hit the road. You're really quite lucky.
Click to expand...


Blimey!

:cool:

I knew it looked different from any spider I’ve seen before but just assumed I hadn’t been looking properly before.

How do I make sure it’s safe and happy?

How can I tell if it’s male or female?

Will it grow much larger?

How long do they live?

Presumably, if it’s a hitchhiker it won’t find a mate. Can they reproduce by parthogenesis?
 
Could it be anything else though tonysingh ? Before I start showing off about it, like.

ETA
I’ve just looked on google, they’re huge though. This spider is small. So a baby? It’s been here all through winter, so it’s survived the cold weather by being indoors. But if it really is a huntsman and grows that big, I can’t really have it roaming around free can I?
 
Last edited:
SheilaNaGig said:
Blimey!

:cool:

I knew it looked different from any spider I’ve seen before but just assumed I hadn’t been looking properly before.

How do I make sure it’s safe and happy?

How can I tell if it’s male or female?

Will it grow much larger?

How long do they live?

Presumably, if it’s a hitchhiker it won’t find a mate. Can they reproduce by parthogenesis?
Click to expand...


Hunstman have short lifespans really, most true spiders do. It's only tarantulas that live past 5. Assuming it's adult, he or she won't be around for much longer, considering winter can be a bastard and it doesn't find a warm corner. There's is obviously a chance it's female and gravid so you could end up with a few hundred. 😂

Best thing is to leave it well alone. It'll find its own food. There's a chance it could be something else but the fact it's up on ceiling and not the floor, the body shape and the prevalence of shops in Brixton with produce from tropical climes.....



Edited to say I've zoomed in as much as I can and I'm even more sure its a huntsman.
 
tonysingh said:
Hunstman have short lifespans really, most true spiders do. It's only tarantulas that live past 5. Assuming it's adult, he or she won't be around for much longer, considering winter can be a bastard and it doesn't find a warm corner. There's is obviously a chance it's female and gravid so you could end up with a few hundred. 😂

Best thing is to leave it well alone. It'll find its own food. There's a chance it could be something else but the fact it's up on ceiling and not the floor, the body shape and the prevalence of shops in Brixton with produce from tropical climes.....



Edited to say I've zoomed in as much as I can and I'm even more sure its a huntsman.
Click to expand...

It sometimes wanders on the walls so I’ll try to get a better picture. I mostly see it on the ceiling.

I worry when I can’t see it. The other day I opened the dishwasher before noticing it was perched on the edge of the door, and it dropped inside. I left the door open and didn’t run it til I saw the spider again. I was so pleased when I saw it had safely evacuated the dishwasher :)
 
gentlegreen said:
Is the relative small size due to less abundant food in the UK ?
Is their lifespan defined by age or number of moults ?
Click to expand...


There's tons on different huntsman species. Some range from dinner plate sized, some down to smaller than in the photo. Food won't be less abundant, the amount of bugs is fine, it's just whether the journey has stressed them enough to make them go off food but a look at the photo and you can see the back end is nice and chunky? That shows its been eating.

A well fed and cared for pet huntsman won't live much beyond 5 and even that's a female. Males will live to sexual maturity, mate and then die.
 
farmerbarleymow said:
I really feel sorry for spiders that they have such short lifespans. :(
Click to expand...

I suppose it must feel quite long to them. Hamsters and mice only live that long too. And octopus. Even large octopuses only live five years, some only live 6 months. That makes me sadder than spiders. They’re so smart, so wonderful, and very dedicated mothers too.
 
tonysingh said:
I considered a pet octopus for my large marine tank but their capacity for escape put me off. I got a moray eel instead.
Click to expand...
That's a very defeatist attitude - you could have lived in harmony with an escaping octopus, at least until it envenomed you and pulled your limbs off.

Octopuses deserve to be free though - it seems deeply cruel to keep them imprisoned in a tank. :(
 
farmerbarleymow said:
That's a very defeatist attitude - you could have lived in harmony with an escaping octopus, at least until it envenomed you and pulled your limbs off.

Octopuses deserve to be free though - it seems deeply cruel to keep them imprisoned in a tank. :(
Click to expand...

My large tank is 750 litres and ivwas only eyeing up dwarf species.

As it is, post covid, I'm looking to fill it with venemous fish now so.... :D
 
By rights I should have one living in subtropical Bristol since I have every other kind of spider - though my daddylongleg spiders are fairly voracious.

I miss Minnie :(

bathroomflorentina.jpg
 
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