Well it was only a matter of time. What the !@#$%^& is this?? (rated, MBA)

[Stonemasonry]

You can pick those things up and play with them. They do have a nasty sting but it takes a lot to **** them off enough to sting you. I have been playing with them since I was a kid, picking them up and letting them crawl around on my arm then setting them down to go about their business, they are mostly harmless but I probably wouldnt suggest you start picking them up and playing with them with no experience, however, there is no reason to fear them at all, they are gentle giants.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not ever kill one or any of our wonderful desert creatures for that matter. If left alone they will simply go about their business and let you go about yours.

It sounds like you handled the situation well.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Stonemasonry

You can pick those things up and play with them. They do have a nasty sting but it takes a lot to **** them off enough to sting you. I have been playing with them since I was a kid, picking them up and letting them crawl around on my arm then setting them down to go about their business, they are mostly harmless but I probably wouldnt suggest you start picking them up and playing with them with no experience, however, there is no reason to fear them at all, they are gentle giants.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not ever kill one or any of our wonderful desert creatures for that matter. If left alone they will simply go about their business and let you go about yours.

It sounds like you handled the situation well.

I agree with you, but, TARANTULAS DONT STING. Their business end is their fangs, which are up front, not out rear like a stinger.

Nice find twojulybabies! Thats a male Aphonopelma spp out in search of a mate. Tarantulas are just big babies, COMPLETELY HARMLESS. Yes, theyre big, but amazing animals! Females in that genus can live to be almost 30 years old, so its imperative that you leave them alone (you did the right thing). They wont bother you as long as you dont bother them. All that poor fella was looking for was a little female lovin. Ive scooped them right out of their burrows before, and most of them dont mind whatsoever.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Marcy1210

Still isn't anything like a cane spider in your bathtub in your hotel on Maui. Those suckers are the size of dinner plates and they attack the brooms you try to kill them with. My son wants a tarantula for a pet. I hope we never, ever see one.

NO such things as a dinner plate sized spider in Hawaii/Maui/whatever. All youre doing is creating unnecessary fear in people, shame on you! The ONLY spider in the world that can potentially reach that size is way down in the Amazon basin... Theraphosa blondi, commonly known as the "Goliath birdeater". They regularly reach 9-11" leg spans, which is still not really dinner plate sized, but close. The biggest spiders in the USA are tarantulas, and we only have one 2 genii here that I can think of (some Brachypelma and many Aphonopelma), which average 5-6" leg spans.

[Steve-o]

lol

Well, as luck would have it, youre not alone twojulybabies!
CactiGuide.com // View topic - Yikes!

[twojulybabies]

ewwwww.

[chey2u]

Originally Posted by twojulybabies

No, here's what happened:

The cat got out of the house. I was smoking on the back patio and of course everyone had to come out with me. When the 7 yr old opened the door, she bolted. She scaled the wall (like she did a few days ago). So we all ran in to grab the flashlight.

We went out the front door and I headed towards the garage to set off the motion detector light. The 7 yr old said, OMG mommy, what's that?

I saw the big-as-a-car spider, and thought to myself that I have to take care of the spider before I look for the cat. So I calmly, as to not scare the kids, told them to back up while I headed for the foyer to grab the push broom.

Then, I headed for the spider, and I swear to God, thought...Steve-O will haunt me if I kill this thing, so I decided to just shoo it as far as I could.

Then we looked for the cat, the 10 yr old got her as usual. I looked for my camera, took a picture, spent 10 more minutes looking for the USB cable and here we are.


Now, I am just drinking heavily.

That was funny the way you told that story. I have to admit they creep me out too. I never got to see one of those when I was there in June but here we have the brown recluse that bite and your tissue begins to die, I hate spiders. Avoid them like the plague. I think you had a tarantula. Not sure how harmful to pets. anyone know? eeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwww

[chey2u]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

I agree with you, but, TARANTULAS DONT STING. Their business end is their fangs, which are up front, not out rear like a stinger.

Nice find twojulybabies! Thats a male Aphonopelma spp out in search of a mate. Tarantulas are just big babies, COMPLETELY HARMLESS. Yes, theyre big, but amazing animals! Females in that genus can live to be almost 30 years old, so its imperative that you leave them alone (you did the right thing). They wont bother you as long as you dont bother them. All that poor fella was looking for was a little female lovin. Ive scooped them right out of their burrows before, and most of them dont mind whatsoever.

OMG i admire those who do not freak out on bugs. I would rather come accross a snake than a crawly creepy spider. I get the heeby jeebies just looking at them at the zoo. haha

[chey2u]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

NO such things as a dinner plate sized spider in Hawaii/Maui/whatever. All youre doing is creating unnecessary fear in people, shame on you! The ONLY spider in the world that can potentially reach that size is way down in the Amazon basin... Theraphosa blondi, commonly known as the "Goliath birdeater". They regularly reach 9-11" leg spans, which is still not really dinner plate sized, but close. The biggest spiders in the USA are tarantulas, and we only have one 2 genii here that I can think of (some Brachypelma and many Aphonopelma), which average 5-6" leg spans.

wow I am impressed. I bow to the spider king steve-o. I think I would die of fright

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by chey2u

OMG i admire those who do not freak out on bugs. I would rather come accross a snake than a crawly creepy spider. I get the heeby jeebies just looking at them at the zoo. haha

Dont worry, arachnophobia is probably in the top 3 biggest fears of mankind, so youre definitely not alone. Its all silly, really. How many 10s of 1000s of species of spiders are there (that we know about)? Know how many can (I stress the word CAN) be potentially lethal to humans? Maybe 4 or 5 species. Spiders get such an undeserved bad rep, Ill never understand it.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by chey2u

That was funny the way you told that story. I have to admit they creep me out too. I never got to see one of those when I was there in June but here we have the brown recluse that bite and your tissue begins to die, I hate spiders. Avoid them like the plague. I think you had a tarantula. Not sure how harmful to pets. anyone know? eeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwww

Tarantulas wont harm your pets unless your pets bother them persistently, at which point I dont blame the tarantula for biting back. Seriously though, their venom is incredibly weak, similar to a bee sting. Expect a little swelling and some localized pain for a short time, thats about it. Ive owned several dozen tarantulas over the years and I can tell you, there is absolutely nothing to be afraid of, they wont hurt you and they want nothing to do with you.

The only thing with the word "tarantula" in it that Im afraid of is the "tarantula hawk wasp" that frequents the desert southwest. Whatever you do, do not take a sting from one, its been rated as one of the most painful things on earth.