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DPChallenge Forums >> General Discussion >> What type of Spider is this?
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06/22/2006 11:32:57 PM · #1
This beast was crawling on the passenger seat in the car. I pulled over and smashed it. Anyone know what type of Spider this is?

If it matters, I'm in Southern CA.

//www.reemasville.com/web/spider1.jpg

//www.reemasville.com/web/spider2.jpg

Message edited by scalvert - It's Postus Giganticus. Please use links..
06/22/2006 11:38:08 PM · #2
1:1?
06/22/2006 11:41:26 PM · #3
maybe a type of Recluse, kind of looks like one. They usually have a fiddle shape on the thorax.
06/22/2006 11:42:59 PM · #4
Recluse spiders are thin and don't have "hair." Looks like a harmless orb weaver to me.

Message edited by author 2006-06-22 23:45:29.
06/22/2006 11:45:10 PM · #5
I think there are 9 species in the SW USA. Some are not thin, the one species in Colorado looks similar to this one. This may not be one, since the really like dark dark areas.
06/22/2006 11:49:54 PM · #6
Originally posted by vtruan:

Some are not thin, the one species in Colorado looks similar to this one.


There are some variations in coloring, but ALL recluse spiders are spindly. This is definitely not a recluse. I'm pretty sure it's an orb weaver.

Message edited by author 2006-06-22 23:54:19.
06/22/2006 11:51:16 PM · #7
I'd say it's a fairly dead type of spider at this point.

06/22/2006 11:53:30 PM · #8
i see spider and if its dark i think black widow. and if its brown i think recluse. and then i think KILL or be KILLED.

i couldn't identify it online. if its a recluse, is it deadly like karate?

Message edited by author 2006-06-22 23:53:43.
06/22/2006 11:56:31 PM · #9
Recluses only have 6 eyes too, but I can't tell from the photo there. They're also the most mistaken spider in the country because they are so feared. I'm with Shannon, I think it's an orb weaver... very common especially this time of year. Here's a great site on spiders, maybe that will help.
06/22/2006 11:58:18 PM · #10
I am positive it is not a black widow nor a brown recluse. Based on your geographic location and the photos I believe it is an orb weeaver. This is my personal and professional opinion.
dc
06/23/2006 12:02:13 AM · #11
FWIW, I climbed up on a counter to get a closer look at a [definite] brown recluse in Kansas a few years ago, and probably broke the sound barrier when he lunged at me. It was a short-lived spider.
06/23/2006 12:04:57 AM · #12
just saw scalverts photo. and thats it! and dcano probably knows what he's talking about too. thanks! good to know i almost crashed for nothing. (not really)
06/23/2006 12:05:22 AM · #13
Originally posted by reemas:

is it deadly like karate?


Take a look at these photos to judge for yourself. Yummy!
06/23/2006 12:06:29 AM · #14
It is a variety of garden spider... dcano and the others are correct, garden spiders are orb weavers and pretty much harmless. I have run across only a few pretty large ones here in So Cal, and they don't seem as common as the little research I have done indicates.

Message edited by author 2006-06-23 00:08:14.
06/23/2006 12:11:17 AM · #15
Originally posted by Telehubbie:

Originally posted by reemas:

is it deadly like karate?


Take a look at these photos to judge for yourself. Yummy!


The thing I never understood is that person with the thumb bite that goes day by day with photos... WHY WASN'T THAT TREATED?? OW!!!!
06/23/2006 12:16:24 AM · #16
The thing I never understood is that person with the thumb bite that goes day by day with photos... WHY WASN'T THAT TREATED?? OW!!!!

Unfortunately it was treated with the best therapy that we have, which at this time is not much. Generally once you are bitten by a brown recluse you just have to wait and see how much tissue damage you get. Sometimes you have to resort to getting a surgical consult to have the dead tissue removed.
06/23/2006 12:27:33 AM · #17
yeesh, I've never heard of a recluse spider - but it's not as deadly as some we have in Australia, I bet. ;>)
06/23/2006 12:43:24 AM · #18
Originally posted by Pug-H:

yeesh, I've never heard of a recluse spider - but it's not as deadly as some we have in Australia, I bet. ;>)


No, definitely not! But at least yours kill relatively quickly, this just kinda... dissolves you...

I love spiders. My daughter's nickname is Spyder and she collects them. Nobody dares kill a spider in THIS household!

I was bitten by a black widow years ago and it was less painful than a wasp sting, though it looked much like one. I did get a touch of fever for a day or so, though.
The biggest problem with your average spider bite is that it dissolves a bit of tissue under the bite site so instead of just healing over on top like a mosquito bite, it has to gradually heal from below, filling the little crater.

eta:
This is a pretty interesting article. It focuses on California, but has some neat information.
recluse facts

Message edited by author 2006-06-23 00:57:38.
06/23/2006 01:06:08 AM · #19
Originally posted by BeeCee:

I was bitten by a black widow years ago and it was less painful than a wasp sting, though it looked much like one.


FWIW, Black Widows often inject little or no venom when they bite people. That might have been true in your case.
06/23/2006 01:11:35 AM · #20
Originally posted by BeeCee:


I was bitten by a black widow years ago and it was less painful than a wasp sting, though it looked much like one. I did get a touch of fever for a day or so, though.


Ditto. Although I never actaully saw the spider that bit me, I suspect that I was bitten about this time last summer while clearing out old piles of bamboo brush. It was a interesting bite. For me it was speedy for a couple of days and was definitely accompanied by heat, mild delerium and fever. In fact, I was pretty tripped out. The bite site became quite pronounced with lots of surrounding discoloration, but it only itched a bit for about a week. Never was terribly painful, but it looked rather bad.

The sickness following the bite, though, was very unique. And I have been bitten by all manner of venomous insects. The initial impact was like the last red wasp sting I had, but unlike wasp, the after effects of the spider lasted for several days.
06/23/2006 07:21:58 AM · #21
Isn't the body too fat to be a recluse?

I'm in agreement that it's an orb weaver. We have seen similar spiders around here especially in the later summer and they also call them barn spiders. They can get really big and come in different colors.
06/23/2006 07:39:31 AM · #22

Harmless Orb Spider, but just enough eeeek! for a good case of the Heebie Jeebies!
It is not a Brown Recluse though. I KNOW what they look like after I studied up on them about 15 years ago.
I was bitten in the big toe and am here to tell you they can do some serious damage.
Do a Google Images on Brown Recluse, preferrably not after a meal.
06/23/2006 08:42:39 AM · #23
Thanks for that article Sheila. I'll forward that to my wife who thinks every spider she sees is a recluse. "There's a spider in the bathroom, I think it's a brown recluse!!! Come quick!"

Brad, that stinks about your toe (no pun intended). Was it in CA? Were you putting on a shoe when you got bit?
06/23/2006 09:35:58 AM · #24
Originally posted by BradP:


Harmless Orb Spider, but just enough eeeek! for a good case of the Heebie Jeebies!
It is not a Brown Recluse though. I KNOW what they look like after I studied up on them about 15 years ago.
I was bitten in the big toe and am here to tell you they can do some serious damage.
Do a Google Images on Brown Recluse, preferrably not after a meal.


were you bitten on your toe by one? show us a pic!!
am i gross or what? lol
06/23/2006 09:42:29 AM · #25
Originally posted by Telehubbie:

Thanks for that article Sheila. I'll forward that to my wife who thinks every spider she sees is a recluse. "There's a spider in the bathroom, I think it's a brown recluse!!! Come quick!"

Brad, that stinks about your toe (no pun intended). Was it in CA? Were you putting on a shoe when you got bit?


That's how it happened to a friend of mine too. Shoes are dark and mysterious places. Be afraid, be very afraid. :P
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