9/10/18

Yes, I'm an arachnophile... Spider Appreciation Post!

UPDATE: I keep finding more and more spiders. Will add pictures of any spiders I find towards the bottom. Consider this spider celebration a living document.


A picture of a spider perched in the folds of a role of toilet paper. Meme format
Well... At least the roll is on the right way.

Flies are utterly disgusting creatures. whenever I see one indoors, I visit an unholy terror upon it... with whatever objects I have at hand- because I can't bear the thought of touching them with my bare skin.

To that end, I appreciate the fuck out of spiders- because they eat flies.

I consider this a personal favor, and give spiders the utmost respect.

Dad loves spiders too! He always points them out to me, ever since I was a little kid he'd take time to show me their web. I remember times where we'd sit and watch them work.

He saw me taking these pictures by the way, and he wanted to look. He said he loved them.

Here are some pictures of the spiders I've found, with my best guess at their identification (with common names). Also, some quotes from childrens' rhymes and folk songs celebrating spiders, with links to relevant sources.

Enjoy.



Cheiracanthium Inclusum- Yellow sac spider, hiding in the folds of a roll of toilet paper
Cheiracanthium Inclusum (Yellow sac spider)? This particular species is especially concerned with your bathroom hygiene. 

A big, hairy spider sitting in its funnel web, waiting to catch a web.
Agelenidae (funnel weaver), maybe Tegenaria Pagana? outside the garage, at the corner of the siding...

It makes me think of the line from that poem:


Cellar spider, or daddy long legs guarding an egg sac
Pholcidae (cellar spider, or daddy longlegs) with eggsac, hiding on the basement ceiling...
These guys are everywhere in our basement. 

Salticidae (jumping spider) on the window
Salticidae (jumping spider) on the window. Look at its eyes!
You can't say that isn't cute.

"Little Miss Muffet sat on her tuffet, eating her curds and whey... Along came a spider, it sat down beside her and frightened miss Muffet away."
Yellow Sac Spider I think, lurking
I think another Cheiracanthium Inclusum (Yellow sac spider) or Hibana Gracilis (garden ghost spider), this one lurking outside by the door.



This one is cool: a female P. Tepidariorum with recently hatched spiderlings... There is visible male, but it is very blurry in the top right corner.
This one is cool: a female P. Tepidariorum (American House Spider) with recently hatched spiderlings... There is visible male, but it is very blurry in the top right corner... Under the deck.

two spiders hanging clinging to the wall on our porch, snacking on night bugs.
This is a twofer... Can't even guess on the ID for the blurry one, but I think the lower one is a Theridiidae (cobweb weaver).



Tepidariorum, American House Spider
P. Tepidariorum (American House Spider)? 



Some kind of baby spider used a web parachute and ended up in my hair. on my arm. carefully got it into my hand for a picture
Some kind of baby spider used a web parachute and ended up in my hair. on my arm. carefully got it into my hand for a picture.

Found a Salticidae (jumping spider) eating a nat, pictured on a bucket outside.
Found a Salticidae (jumping spider) eating a nat, pictured on a bucket outside.



The classic look! Beautiful pose for this spider, maybe anotherP. Tepidariorum (American House Spider)?
The classic look! Beautiful pose for this spider, maybe anotherP. Tepidariorum (American House Spider)?   

Can't tell what this little buddy caught, but either way... But I know it's fucked.
Can't tell what this little buddy (Funnel Weaver) caught, but either way... But I know it's fucked. I think another  


I think this may be a Lycosidae (wolf spider) it was super fast too!
I think this may be a Lycosidae Funnel Weaver! Thanks for the ID on this one, redditor /u/_Not_A_Spider
two spiders hanging out waiting for flies
Another Twofer! 

Some kind of orb weaver? Terrible picture. Sorry
Some kind of orb weaver? Terrible picture. Sorry
AAAND- here come the webs!
I love spiders and I also love their webs, not so much the messy strands from house spiders and cellar spiders- but the geometric patterns other spiders make are sooo cool!

Makes me think- how cool is it that they trap their prey? Other than humans and spiders, can anybody name some animals that trap their prey?

In this regard I feel a certain connection with them- I trap animals in the havahart, they trap animals in their webs. Fun to contemplate.

Now I'll shut up, and show you some webs.

A traditional spiders web, catching the sunlight.
Web are beautiful 


Spider webs, thick cluster

More webs!

a dead hornet, on the window sill
Did this drone get killed by a spider? Maybe?

a desicated fly corpse, with its guts sucked out.
And will round the whole thing out with a discarded meal... A fly with all its insides sucked out. 

UPDATE: Yesterday dad and I were harvesting the mature seeds off of the dill plant... Look what we found:

a grey ghost spider climbing down a stalk of bolted dill.
A grey ghost spider (family Anyphaenidae, possibly Hibana genus). Very cool looking. I had to kind of get under it to take a good picture. Obviously spiders don't "think" the way we do, but I have to wonder what impulses it felt, seeing my huge face looking up at it.



Then Dad pointed out a fly dangling under the raspberries:
a fly, caught, wrapped, and dangled by a spider


The fly is wrapped up nice and tight, a nice snack for later- if your a spider!

So we looked for the owner of that web... Look what we found.


Araneus Diadematus- Cross Orb Weaver spider curled up in its leave shelter snacking on a fly
Araneus Diadematus (Cross Orb Weaver)- each night they spin a web, then they spend the daylight sheltering in a lair made of curled leaves and feasting on their catch. So cool.

"I knew an old lady who swallowed a spider, it wriggled and jiggled and wiggled inside her- she swallowed the spider to catch the fly but I don't know why she swallowed the fly... Perhaps she'll die."
Araneus Diadematus, coaxed it out of its shelter
A better view of the Araneus Diadematus- cross orb weaver. You can see where it gets its name, the cross pattern on its back. Very distinct and gorgeous. I let this one go back in its bush, hope it kills a lot more flies!

Some kind of orb Weaver, in a beautiful web
A Tuftlegged Orbweaver (Mangora Placida), thanks for the ID, redditor /u/joot78


An orchard orb weaver, I believe... Leucage Venusta

An orchard orb weaver, I believe... Leucage Venusta
Mangora Spiculata, Thanks again Redditor /u/joot78


a green legged spider, maybe an orchard orb weaver?
a green legged spider, Mangora Spiculata, Thanks again Redditor /u/joot78



I think another Araneus Diadematus... What you guys think?







I love this kind of spider, the orb weaver.... It inspired me to draw one with a horror twist:

Yeah, I know its not that great of a drawing. But I happen to like doing
shitty sketches, and I had fun... so whatever.




FIRST SPIDER PIC of 2019!!! 
Little jumper, 
check out the video I posted a video on reddit 


Here's another... Anybody got an ID?

Looks like it mimics those tiny ants or something...

OH MY GOD! This is the sickest spider pic I've ever taken!


Jumping spider slurping out the guts of a stupid fly


FUCKIGN SICK!


YOU'RE WELCOME!!!