Spider query

[slinky]

Do spiders only eat live food? I just read somewhere that the Brown Recluse likes dead stuff. Any spiders I see are usually torched nice and crisp till the point it's about to smoke, then the charred body is left there in hopes that it'll scare away the next spider that comes along.

[ben-the-slacker]

If by live you mean right there on the spot, then probably not, though they can. I think most just wrap em up in silk and preserve the dead bug til a later time. Kind of like us with pickling I guess. Then they just drink the inner juices yummm.

[OuTpaTienT]

Spray adhesive works good for making spider scarecrows too.

[ben-the-slacker]

You guys arachnophobic or something?

[OuTpaTienT]

Totally.

[ben-the-slacker]

Oh my!

[no1_vern]

Cowards.

Not even Terminix thinks spiders are bad!

Quote:
But truth be told, most spiders are harmless and tend to be quite shy. Of the more than 3,000 species of spiders, only four kinds of spiders in this country are considered to have dangerous bites: the black widow, the brown recluse, the hobo and the yellow sac spider.

Their spider pest library has pictures and descriptions.

Pest managment specialists .


In fact after Bats, and Birds, Spiders eat the most insects that are considered HARMFUL to man.

[phenious]

We had a serious Black Widow Problem in our old house so we had to call in an exterminator. He found one Black Widow that was so big he kept it for him self. He has it in a jar at the office or something. He told us if we ever got bit by one not to worry and just get someone to drive us to a hospital and stay calm, he said Brown Recluse are the type to worry about but they generally aren’t in such populated areas. He said if you get bit by one of those call an ambulance ASAP

-: phenious :-

[Theophylact]

By and large, bee stings are far more dangerous.

Here's The Straight Dope on venemous North American spiders...

[slinky]

Well, I don't mind if they stay outdoors but once they step inside the house they must be exterminated. Here's a little tidbit- the average human eats 8 spiders in their sleep over a lifetime. Comforting huh?