Reply to: Spiders

[BrowneIssue]

Last summer I was plagued by tiny flies which annoyed the heck out of me by alternately flying in front of my monitor and about 2 inches in front of my eyes when I was sat at the computer.

We've had that for a few days.

We leave the big light off and use lamps. Mrs BI's lamp faces the wall so the mozzies go and annoy that. The other lamp is pointing at the white A4 sheets in the fax machine. The mozzies go and annoy that too.

That keeps them off the monitors and out of my beer.


My big grump is that these new-fangled low-power bulbs don't get hot enough to cook flying things like the proper bulbs we had when I were a lad.

[Sysman]

For spiders, I look at it as evolution in action. Those I don't see, get to breed.

I think I've seen evolution in action here. Last summer I was plagued by tiny flies which annoyed the heck out of me by alternately flying in front of my monitor and about 2 inches in front of my eyes when I was sat at the computer.

The first ones were dead easy to kill, but as time went on they became faster and harder to swat. I've still got a dodgy bit on my laptop screen where I hit it with too much fly spray and some got in

[NotAllThere]

The jelly stuff is good. The workers take the jelly back the queen. Queen dies, problem goes away.

For spiders, I look at it as evolution in action. Those I don't see, get to breed.

[BrowneIssue]

If they kill ants send me a box of them... Sprayed more chemicals than the Americans did over south Vietnam. No avail.

Some years back I discovered I had a trail of ants from the garden to a honey jar in the cupboard (predominantly).

I tried for days to get rid of them: boiling water, sprays and that white powder stuff. Nothing bothered them.

I went into a chemist to ask what they had. He sold me a little tin with special jelly in. He said:

"That should do the job, however..."

he looked over my shoulder then his shoulder to check there was nobody else about, then whispered:

"... if it doesn't, come back. I'll give you a little something that'll see them off good and proper. Just don't tell anyone; I could get struck off."

The little tins with the jelly in (punch a hole each side and they walk through the insecticide jelly) did the job.

Which is a shame ... I have always wanted to know what "a little something" is.

[minestrone]

If they kill ants send me a box of them, feckers all over my kitchen, nearly had to get taken to hospital last year when one got me on the ankle and it turned infected. gf wanted me to get intravenous antibiotics.

Sprayed more chemicals than the Americans did over south Vietnam. No avail.

[Cliphead]

Used to work in a factory where we imported raw materials from all over the world... The wildlife there was amazing.

Watching the Mexican bird eating spiders jumping off the delivery wagon when they pulled back the sheets (hundreds of the big buggers), moths the size of your hand, black widows (now they were scary).

There was an alert put out after the black widow discovery that anyone suffering a spider bite should shout up real loud, and that they should be rushed to hospital immediately. Well one guy got bit. Wasn't a black widdow though, had fangs the size of matchsticks. Had to be burnt off with a fag end. He was rushed off to hospital, came back the next day (no sick pay there) with an arm the size of a pillow!

There was a dispute after the black widdow discovery as to whether they were actually black widdows or some harmless domestic type (managements viewpoint). As nightshift manager, I had to look after some one night, a lad caught them and put them in a glass jar. One was a mother with a sack of eggs. I swear you could hear her spitting venom at the jar if anyone got close....

I'm gonna have nightmares about this one, job from hell as far as I'm concerned. I don't mind admitting I'm arachnophobic, just as well the girlie isn't.

[thelace]

Used to work in a factory where we imported raw materials from all over the world... The wildlife there was amazing.

Watching the Mexican bird eating spiders jumping off the delivery wagon when they pulled back the sheets (hundreds of the big buggers), moths the size of your hand, black widows (now they were scary).

There was an alert put out after the black widow discovery that anyone suffering a spider bite should shout up real loud, and that they should be rushed to hospital immediately. Well one guy got bit. Wasn't a black widdow though, had fangs the size of matchsticks. Had to be burnt off with a fag end. He was rushed off to hospital, came back the next day (no sick pay there) with an arm the size of a pillow!

There was a dispute after the black widdow discovery as to whether they were actually black widdows or some harmless domestic type (managements viewpoint). As nightshift manager, I had to look after some one night, a lad caught them and put them in a glass jar. One was a mother with a sack of eggs. I swear you could hear her spitting venom at the jar if anyone got close....

[OrangeHopper]

We get a lot of these down south during hot dry summers.

[BrowneIssue]

I've got the creeps now. Itchy creeps over my legs and back. <shudder> I feel like I'm covered in little creepy things.

So, to get my own back... small invertebrate v predatory vertebrate.

[Pogle]

Imagine this in your garden?

Linky

cool

[Cliphead]

Spiders? - I love 'em
Frequently save them from our marauding cats, would never kill one (in this country anyway) Have ALWAYS wanted a pet tarantula, but couldn't really handle having to feed it live crickets and also Mr P said NO very loudly

Recently have started to try and identify all the different ones in the garden, I found a lovely green orb spider yesterday and we are currently overrun with jumping spiders - which are my personal fave

Imagine this in your garden?

Linky

[Cliphead]

Was bitten by an unidentifed spider in Maine a few years ago, swollen arm and pain went away after a few days but for weeks afterwards I'd get bouts of nausea and dizziness.

[Pogle]

Spiders? - I love 'em
Frequently save them from our marauding cats, would never kill one (in this country anyway) Have ALWAYS wanted a pet tarantula, but couldn't really handle having to feed it live crickets and also Mr P said NO very loudly

Recently have started to try and identify all the different ones in the garden, I found a lovely green orb spider yesterday and we are currently overrun with jumping spiders - which are my personal fave

[darmstadt]

I remember catching this big (6") hairy arsed spider once in South Africa. We saw it wlking across the grass and everyone panicked. I rushed indoors and grabbed a big old glass jar, ran back outside and using my foot booted it into the jar. Mission nearly accomplished, what do I do with it now? I gave it to a mate who quite liked spiders.

At the same time, a gang of us used to go catching lizards (big spikey buggers) and Spitting Cobras - Rinkhals. All you needed was a hessian sack, a pointy stick and swimming goggles. It used to bring in some pocked money as we used to sell them to the sanke farm who use to milk them for their venom. There came the day though when I had to stop. I came home one day with a sack and my mother asked what was in it, 6 baby cobras and their mother I proudly replied. I'd never seen my mother go that shade of white before! They were sold to the snake farm and we made quite a bit of money but that was the end of snake hunting which in a way was quite good as I had not taken an interest in a girlie down the road and she in me. The only problem was I had to take up ballet which in SA was not the thing a 'bloke' should do.

[Churchill]

Spiders?

I was once clearing out the garage when I got bitten by a spider! A corner of my hand went black and swollen! This was in the UK, not the jungles of South America FFS!

In the UK there are 14 native spiders that bite and these have been recored by the Natural History Museum as follows:

■Tube web spider
■False widow spider
■Woodlouse spider
■Walnut orb-weaver spider
■False widow or cellar spider
■Lace weaver spider
■Black lace weaver spider
■Mouse spider
■Rustic wolf spider
■Bark sac spider
■Stone spider
■Cross or garden spider
■Bruennichi's Argiope
■Money spider
All of the above have bites that lead to reddening and swelling but to my knowledge there have been no deaths arising from UK spider bites and no life threatening allergic reactions either.