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Arachnophobia

Beresford said:
Well, we are coming up to mating season for these big boys and girls.
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Ireland is bracing for it as well ...
Ireland under attack from sex-crazed spiders 'the size of your hand'

At the end of August, Ireland faces being invaded by a swarm of sexually aggressive, fist-sized spiders to really make your skin crawl.

And these aren't just any sex-crazed, fist-sized spiders. These ones can apparently go from zero to 60 in one second. ...

According to experts, these eight-legged freaks were on the prowl for a mate, so the Irish wee being advised to "keep your eyes peeled as well as your wits about you".

The male house spider can grow to have a leg-span of up to 10cm in the mating season (August to September) and people in Ireland are being warned agian this year 2021, to check their sheds, gardens and warm spots in the corners of their homes for the creatures.
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FULL STORY: https://www.irishpost.com/news/irel...x-crazed-spiders-the-size-of-your-hand-191776
 
It's probably nothing to do with the the above post from EnolaGaia, but about 4 years ago, I went on a holiday in Ireland, touring around on trains and coaches. On one slightly chilly and damp September morning, on one stretch of railway - sadly I can't remember where - I was looking out of the train window enjoying the scenery when I noticed that the line of bushes alongside the track seemed to absolutely covered - and I mean smothered - in what appeared to be dense white spiders' webs. As I gawped, the train sped on for what must have been miles, and the web-shrouded bushes beside the track (as far as I could tell, it looked like it was all the same type of bush) went on and on and on for MILES. The coating of spiders' webs (as I assumed it to be) was very uniform. I assumed the striking ghostly-white appearance of the web must have been accentuated by moisture in the air. I remember wondering how many spiders must have been involved in creating this Webtropolis. Undoubtedly they wouldn't have been the same type of creature as in EG's post. Anyone know what might have been about? What kind of bush would it have been? And what kind of spider?
 
CharmerKamelion said:
It's probably nothing to do with the the above post from EnolaGaia, but about 4 years ago, I went on a holiday in Ireland, touring around on trains and coaches. On one slightly chilly and damp September morning, on one stretch of railway - sadly I can't remember where - I was looking out of the train window enjoying the scenery when I noticed that the line of bushes alongside the track seemed to absolutely covered - and I mean smothered - in what appeared to be dense white spiders' webs. As I gawped, the train sped on for what must have been miles, and the web-shrouded bushes beside the track (as far as I could tell, it looked like it was all the same type of bush) went on and on and on for MILES. The coating of spiders' webs (as I assumed it to be) was very uniform. I assumed the striking ghostly-white appearance of the web must have been accentuated by moisture in the air. I remember wondering how many spiders must have been involved in creating this Webtropolis. Undoubtedly they wouldn't have been the same type of creature as in EG's post. Anyone know what might have been about? What kind of bush would it have been? And what kind of spider?
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It could have been ermine moth caterpillars, they can cover trees and hedges in silk when pupating.

4C9E4B1300000578-0-image-a-30_1527249654909.jpg
 
Oh wow. Yes, it did look a lot like that, but it was kind of 'smoother' looking, less 'spiky' in structure, but undoubtedly pretty similar. Maybe it wasn't our eight-legged friends after all. Thanks Nosmo.... and btw.... cool avatar! Where did you find that pic?
 
CharmerKamelion said:
Oh wow. Yes, it did look a lot like that, but it was kind of 'smoother' looking, less 'spiky' in structure, but undoubtedly pretty similar. Maybe it wasn't our eight-legged friends after all. Thanks Nosmo.... and btw.... cool avatar! Where did you find that pic?
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I think the spikiness is to do with how the hedge is under the silk.
My avatar came from here.

https://www.pinterest.com/Rushworld/wtf-photos
 

Spider made woman scream so loud that her neighbours called the police​

A team of five officers showed up at Hollie’s door, ready to save her from whatever scream-inducing danger she was in.

She said: ‘I opened my door, and before they could say anything I just cried: “I’m so sorry there’s a spider under my bed and I’m petrified”.’

One of the officers picked it up with his hand and took it outside with him – not without laughing at me. It was crawling about his arm as he was walking out the door.’
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Police searching for the creature:

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Hunting false widow spiders in Dublin. Vid at link.

We should see plenty of action in an hour, Dr John Dunbar says assuredly via email, excited at the prospect.

As a venom expert, many nights are spent combing the walls and railings of Dublin housing estates for Ireland’s highly-poisonous false widow spider.

Alone in the dark, armed with extended tweezers and a headlamp, he carefully places each one inside long plastic tubes as the residents sleep inside, blissfully unaware.

On a chilly evening thousands of such spiders are scattered just out of sight along Beech Park, a long quiet suburban road in Lucan lined with detached homes and webbed hedges. The noble false widow – or steatoda nobilis – first recorded in Ireland in 1999 is far more common than most people realise and its numbers are increasing alarmingly.

Within two minutes Dr Dunbar is poking at a web string. He has spotted two long, thin protruding legs, inconspicuous to the passerby. It is the first trophy of 94 that night.

Although he has handled thousands, Dr Dunbar has never been bitten. Twenty bites have been recorded in Ireland, he declares, and the bite is one to be avoided.

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/env...er-they-are-everywhere-in-this-area-1.4676947
 
I spotted this on the outside of my Kitchen window just the other morning, so took this photo as the Sun's first ray's of the morning caught and highlighted these spiders webs, and diffracted this multitude of colours of many degree's of the spectrum.
"I think I'll put off cleaning the windows for a little while yet though!"
DSC00417.pngDSC00417 (2).JPG
 
Krepostnoi said:
I'm sure you'll all share my pleasure at the news that the first new species of tarantula to be discovered in Asia for over a century has been, well, discovered. It is the first tarantula species we know of that lives exclusively in bamboo. You can revel in its beauty here:
View attachment 51639
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Wow. Cool. Looks like it's got 10 legs, though I assume the two shorter front appendages aren't actually legs. They're probably its thingies. But they look quite leggy.
 
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Jim said:
Wow it does appear to have 10 legs which is impossible for the spider family. Unlike a relative but not an actual spider the camel spider.
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There are well over a hundred spider families, which are all spiders. The class arachnida does include the order solifugae, which are sometimes called camel spiders among other things. Their fifth pair of 'legs' at the front are also modified pedipalps.
 
Researchers in Ireland have confirmed the false widow spider snares, kills, and dines on ... ... bats.
Scientists in Galway say their research on a species of spider, common across Ireland and the UK, has recorded another first.

The noble false widow has been found feeding on a bat pup in an attic in England.

The researchers at NUI Galway were contacted about the discovery, after conducting several years of investigations into the invasive creatures. ...

Shropshire based artist Ben Waddams found bats entangled in a spider's web, close to the entrance to a roost in his attic. ...

One was completely immobilised and was being eaten by a spider. A second, larger bat was also captured, but was released by Mr Waddams, before venom had been administered.

Scientists say it is the first time any species of false widow has been recorded preying on mammals.

Dr Michel Dugon, who oversees the research at NUI Galway, said it was a fascinating discovery. ...

The bat eating spider is the latest in a series of findings related to the invasive eight-legged predators.

Last year, Dr Dugon's team found the spiders could deliver bites that could require hospital treatment.

Before that, it was discovered that over 100 toxins found in the spiders' venom were common to those found in black widows. ...
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FULL STORY: https://www.rte.ie/news/connacht/2022/0301/1283666-spider-research/
 
Now we have spiders hunting in packs. The stuff of nightmares.


Most adult spiders live as loners, but members of the species Anelosimus eximius form colonies by the thousands.

These tiny red spiders are smaller than the eraser on a pencil, but they work together to build nonstick webs that can span meters. When a moth, grasshopper, or other insect falls into the web, a mob of spiders must descend on it quickly before it can escape.

This creepy crawly cohort moves toward its prey in stop motion: The spiders pause, then rush forward in unison, then pause again. The staccato approach allows the spiders to sense their prey’s vibrations and synchronize the hunting party’s arrival.

To understand how these spiders match their movements, scientists observed the hunting behavior of two wild colonies in French Guiana. The researchers placed a miniature motor in the nests and adjusted its vibration pattern and intensity to simulate the movements of a prey insect. They collected videos of the spiders to see how they coordinated their approach to the vibrating lure.

https://www.science.org/content/article/these-spiders-hunt-packs-watch-how-they-do-it
 
ramonmercado said:
Now we have spiders hunting in packs. The stuff of nightmares.


Most adult spiders live as loners, but members of the species Anelosimus eximius form colonies by the thousands.

These tiny red spiders are smaller than the eraser on a pencil, but they work together to build nonstick webs that can span meters. When a moth, grasshopper, or other insect falls into the web, a mob of spiders must descend on it quickly before it can escape.

This creepy crawly cohort moves toward its prey in stop motion: The spiders pause, then rush forward in unison, then pause again. The staccato approach allows the spiders to sense their prey’s vibrations and synchronize the hunting party’s arrival.

To understand how these spiders match their movements, scientists observed the hunting behavior of two wild colonies in French Guiana. The researchers placed a miniature motor in the nests and adjusted its vibration pattern and intensity to simulate the movements of a prey insect. They collected videos of the spiders to see how they coordinated their approach to the vibrating lure.

https://www.science.org/content/article/these-spiders-hunt-packs-watch-how-they-do-it
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Jesus, l hope the motor wasn’t radioactive…

maximus otter
 
ramonmercado said:
Now we have spiders hunting in packs. The stuff of nightmares.


Most adult spiders live as loners, but members of the species Anelosimus eximius form colonies by the thousands.

These tiny red spiders are smaller than the eraser on a pencil, but they work together to build nonstick webs that can span meters. When a moth, grasshopper, or other insect falls into the web, a mob of spiders must descend on it quickly before it can escape.

This creepy crawly cohort moves toward its prey in stop motion: The spiders pause, then rush forward in unison, then pause again. The staccato approach allows the spiders to sense their prey’s vibrations and synchronize the hunting party’s arrival.

To understand how these spiders match their movements, scientists observed the hunting behavior of two wild colonies in French Guiana. The researchers placed a miniature motor in the nests and adjusted its vibration pattern and intensity to simulate the movements of a prey insect. They collected videos of the spiders to see how they coordinated their approach to the vibrating lure.

https://www.science.org/content/article/these-spiders-hunt-packs-watch-how-they-do-it
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I like spiders but that is truly disturbing!
 
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cycleboy2 said:
I like spiders but that is truly disturbing!
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These guys are only little, though. There's a species of tarantula that is alleged to hunt communally: it's commonly known as the chicken spider. (I don't believe it's been described, yet, so there's no official scientific name.) I mentioned it in this very thread a few years ago. Unfortunately (or maybe it's for the best?), the pictorial evidence in the article I linked to seems to have been lost to the aether.
 
The Joros are going to parachute down on you.

New research, published Feb. 17 in the journal Physiological Entomology, suggests that the palm-sized Joro spider, which swarmed North Georgia by the millions last September, has a special resilience to the cold.

This has led scientists to suggest that the 3-inch (7.6 centimeters) bright-yellow-striped spiders — whose hatchlings disperse by fashioning web parachutes to fly as far as 100 miles (161 kilometers) — could soon dominate the Eastern Seaboard.

“People should try to learn to live with them,” lead author Andy Davis, a research scientist at the University of Georgia, said in a statement. “If they‘re literally in your way, I can see taking a web down and moving them to the side, but they‘re just going to be back next year.”

https://www.scientificamerican.com/...d-flying-spiders-could-invade-the-east-coast/
 
ramonmercado said:
The Joros are going to parachute down on you.

New research, published Feb. 17 in the journal Physiological Entomology, suggests that the palm-sized Joro spider, which swarmed North Georgia by the millions last September, has a special resilience to the cold.

This has led scientists to suggest that the 3-inch (7.6 centimeters) bright-yellow-striped spiders — whose hatchlings disperse by fashioning web parachutes to fly as far as 100 miles (161 kilometers) — could soon dominate the Eastern Seaboard.

“People should try to learn to live with them,” lead author Andy Davis, a research scientist at the University of Georgia, said in a statement. “If they‘re literally in your way, I can see taking a web down and moving them to the side, but they‘re just going to be back next year.”

https://www.scientificamerican.com/...d-flying-spiders-could-invade-the-east-coast/
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Thanks for that, Ramon. Instant constipation cure. Don't expect it will help out with my insomnia though.
 
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