Jul

23

Book ‘Em: Whatever A Spider Can.

Posted by Christopher Waldrop

July 23, 2007 |

spider.jpg

The Book Of The Spider: From Arachnophobia To The Love Of Spiders by Paul Hillyard (Random House, 1996) 

 When I was seven I had a bug catcher. It was a plastic, hourglass-shaped thing with a bottom dotted with tiny holes. The bottom and top could be removed so I could put in leaves, sticks, and, of course, whatever bugs I wanted. My mother gave it to me because she was tired of me punching holes in the lids of all her jars. One afternoon I took my bug catcher and my best friend Chad to a vacant lot near my house to search for specimens. Chad wandered around and I turned over a rock to find an exceptionally beautiful spider with a shiny black body and a red hourglass on her abdomen. As much as I love spiders I know they bite, so even then I was a little leery of touching certain ones with my bare hands. So I called Chad, who came over, grabbed the spider, and stuck it in my bug catcher. I was thrilled to have such an exceptional specimen and immediately went to show my parents who were, well, less than thrilled. They asked Chad and I which one of us touched the spider and, being good boys, we each pointed at the other and said, in unison, “He did it.”

I know a black widow when I see it now and stay well away from them, but I’ve never lost my love of spiders. This weekend, for instance, I spotted at least five different species, ranging from jumping spiders to wolf spiders to two orb weavers, just in my back yard. For anyone suffering from arachnophilia (although most of us with the condition don’t consider it suffering) I highly recommend Paul Hillyard’s The Book Of The Spider. A spider specialist working at London’s Natural History Museum, Hillyard’s book is full of fascinating information about spiders of all types, including:

  • There really was a Miss Muffett. She was the daughter of Doctor Thomas Muffett (1553-1604) who loved spiders and believed they could cure many ailments (sometimes when taken internally).
  • In 1922 arachnologist W.B. Baerg purposely provoked a North American black widow (Latrodectus mactans) into biting him to observe the effects. While it was surprisingly hard to get one of the world’s most feared spiders to bite him (it kept backing up) the worst part was the next five days. While most of the nausea, muscle spasms, and pain subsided after the first twenty-four hours, Baerg was hospitalized and had a “feeling of wretchedness” for days.
  • Of more than 35,000 species of spider only about 500 have a bite that’s dangerous to humans.
  • The original tarantula was found in Italy and was thought to be Lycosa tarantula. Victims of its bite, the “taranti”, would try to flush the venom from their body with a lively dance called the Tarantella. The spider that may have actually been responsible for bite victims having fevers, nausea, and muscle pain, may actually have been the Mediterranean black widow, Latrodectus tredecimguttatus.
  • Spiders form all kinds of webs. While most webs are used simply for catching prey, spiders also build webs to protect their young. One very special spider, Argyroneta aquatica, uses its web as a diving bell to take an air supply with it underwater while it goes hunting for fish.  

Comments

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

Speak your mind

<< Post Navigation >>

« « Wild About Harry. | I See London, I See France. » »