1. bushwells
  2. From the Annals of Arachnophobia Vol. 5, Issue 2

From the Annals of Arachnophobia Vol. 5, Issue 2

By bushwells on May 16, 2008.

I have been known to display my love-hate relationship with spiders here on the Refuge. Knowing my ambivalent feelings toward arachnids, on-line droogs have shared photos of a couple of cool orb weavers, the type of spider I like, versus the lycosids which freak me out.

Spider porn below the fold...

First, Spacebee of Texas shares these pictures of a fine Gasteracantha cancriformis (Crab-like orb weaver) specimen. This spider resides in her backyard, having strung up the web between a starfruit and guava tree.

Now why am I reminded of a Dalkon shield?

i-98e91e050d866030dd4ca527c7e94401-Crab_spider_2.jpg

And the rear-view:

i-ea32993f69178b5408f5074f7ff2350f-Crab_spider_rear.jpg

ST of the UK provides the photo below for my squeamish but fascinated entertainment. This is an Araneus sp. chowing down on a damselfly. ST has a pretty serious macro lens on hand. Expect to see her photographs appearing on the Refuge in the future.

i-a777e8af6c15c0eeb5bd6ed186cfdf6d-Araneus_spider.jpg

I acknowledge that the above is a beautiful critter, but I can't shake the feeling of eight phantom legs and those little pedipalps scuttling over my skin.

Maybe I should get a pet tarantula as aversion therapy.

Many thanks to spacebee and ST for the photos!

Tags
Arachnophobia

More like this

Name That Orb Weaver!
Since Labor Day weekend has passed, it's time to put away those white shoes and to take note of the late summer orb weaver spiders. Orb Weaver spiders are members of the Araneidae family. These include the ubiquitous yellow and black garden spider and familiar genera such as Mangora spp. and…
Arachnosex, pt. 2: Spiders Love to Snuggle!
Just as a toddler who persisently pokes the light socket with a fork, looking for the forbidden jolt, so I invariably open spider links on Live Science. This latest salacious spidey-bit did not disappoint. I'm beginning to think that spider sex on Live Science is equiavlent to the cheesecake…
Friday Arthropod - Can You Identify This Spider?
A couple of weeks ago, I posted some pictures of some large spiders and asked for help in identifying one of them. Jerry Cates of Bugs In The News got back to me quite quickly, and identified the mystery spider as Nephila clavipes - the same species as the other ones shown in that post. I took…
World's largest web-spinning spider discovered in South Africa
In the forests of South Africa lurks an arachnophobe's nightmare - Nephila kowaci, the largest web-spinning spider in the world. The females of this newly discovered species have bodies that are 3-4 centimetres in length (1.5 inches) and legs that are each around 7.5cm long (3 inches). This new…

I can't shake the feeling of eight phantom legs and those little pedipalps scuttling over my skin.

Stop it. You're turning me on.

I hope we do see more of ST's photos in the future. The details in the wings of the damselfly are really beautiful.

The orb weaver is mighty freaky.

I hope we do see more of ST's photos in the future.

Count on it. There's a fine example of florotica she just sent which will appear soon. ST's talent, eye for nature and eye-popping macro lens are wonderful finds.

Warren, don't make me do the jumping spider sex dance!