Spiders

[Bill W]

9 hours ago, sandrewn said:

The famous philosopher Aristotle was the first to assign humans with five traditional senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. However, if he categorized animal senses today, the list would have been longer. Several animals possess additional perceptive abilities that allow them to experience the world in ways we can barely imagine. Here's is one from our list of 11 animals that have a sixth sense.

Spiders

All spiders have unique organs called slit sensilla. These mechanoreceptors, or sensory organs, allow them to sense minute mechanical strains on their exoskeleton. This sixth sense makes it easy for spiders to judge things like the size, weight, and possibly even the creature that gets caught in their webs.

It may also help them tell the difference between the movement of an insect and the movement of the wind, or blade of grass.

 

That's interesting, and maybe it's to make up for having a face that only its mother could love.  

[sandrewn]

West African Togo Starburst baboon spider (Heteroscodra maculata)

Is an Old World species of tarantula. Heteroscodra maculata specimens are quite fast, defensive and possess potent venom.

 

 

 

 

 

[Bill W]

4 hours ago, sandrewn said:

West African Togo Starburst baboon spider (Heteroscodra maculata)

Is an Old World species of tarantula. Heteroscodra maculata specimens are quite fast, defensive and possess potent venom.

I'm sure it's just a trick of the camera, but this spider looks huge, as well as being fast and having a potent venom.  They can keep it in Africa.  

[sandrewn]

1 hour ago, Bill W said:

I'm sure it's just a trick of the camera, but this spider looks huge, as well as being fast and having a potent venom.  They can keep it in Africa.  

I suppose this all depends on your definition of 'HUGE'?

Read the following/watch the video, tell me/us what you think?

Heteroscodra maculata-Togo Starburst | My Monsters

Edited October 20, 2023 by sandrewn

[Bill W]

19 minutes ago, sandrewn said:

I suppose this all depends on your definition of 'HUGE'?

Read the following/watch the video, tell me/us what you think?

Heteroscodra maculata-Togo Starburst | My Monsters

Ok, maybe not huge, but it's larger than I'd want to deal with.  

I can understand why the guy was being so careful handling it, since it's suppose to be so venomous, but I hope that this he took out at the beginning wasn't an egg sac.  

[sandrewn]

"The green huntsman spider (Micrommata virescens) is arguably one of the most beautiful spiders from central Europe. The green coloration is due to the bilin micromatabilin and its conjugates in haemolymph, interstitial tissues and the yolk of oocytes. They change coloration during development, as adults the females are bright green, while males also have red coloration on the opistosoma.

(this is all gobbledygook to me)

 

 

 

[Bill W]

8 hours ago, sandrewn said:

"The green huntsman spider (Micrommata virescens) is arguably one of the most beautiful spiders from central Europe. The green coloration is due to the bilin micromatabilin and its conjugates in haemolymph, interstitial tissues and the yolk of oocytes. They change coloration during development, as adults the females are bright green, while males also have red coloration on the opistosoma.

(this is all gobbledygook to me)

As humans, we often talk about having eyes in the back of your head, but looking at that depiction of the green huntsman spider, it actually appears that it has eyes facing in all directions, so it does actually have eyes in the back of its head. 

[Bill W]

8 hours ago, sandrewn said:

I'm fascinated by the Diving Bell Spider.  It can spin an air tight web that will actually absorbs oxygen from the water so it can stay submerged for its entire life, I suppose, but how does it get food?  Is it able to pull its food through that airtight web as well?  Or is it living off microscopic particles that enter its web along with the oxygen? 

[sandrewn]

11 hours ago, Bill W said:

I'm fascinated by the Diving Bell Spider.  It can spin an air tight web that will actually absorbs oxygen from the water so it can stay submerged for its entire life, I suppose, but how does it get food?  Is it able to pull its food through that airtight web as well?  Or is it living off microscopic particles that enter its web along with the oxygen? 

I try to find the answers to any questions that are asked. Sometimes I get lucky.

The following answer all of your questions. The first one answers your main question about food. The rest, any and everything else you might want to know about them.

what does the diving bell spider eat - Google Search

The Diving Bell Spider Encases Its Abdomen in an Air Bubble - YouTube

Nature Blows My Mind! The Strange SCUBA-Diving Spider

diving bell spider - Google Search

 

[sandrewn]

Agelenopsis - American Grass Spider

Agelenopsis, commonly called the American grass spider, is a genus of spiders found throughout the United States. It is one of the fastest running spiders.

 

(Looks can be deceiving !!)

 

 

[Bill W]

8 hours ago, sandrewn said:

Agelenopsis - American Grass Spider

Agelenopsis, commonly called the American grass spider, is a genus of spiders found throughout the United States. It is one of the fastest running spiders.

I think I played with some of these spiders when I was a kid, back before I gradually was tutored to be afraid of spiders by various family members. 

[Bill W]

8 hours ago, sandrewn said:

 

 

(Looks can be deceiving !!)

This spider looks like some native warrior from any continent that has put on war paint to prepare for battle.  It also appears as if it's ready to star in some modern horror film. 

[sandrewn]

Pink Flower Crab Spider

 

 

[Bill W]

21 minutes ago, sandrewn said:

Pink Flower Crab Spider

This spider looks as if it could be related to the pink crayfish, the pink octopus, or the pink squid.  It definitely has that other worldly appearance.

[sandrewn]

 

 

 

[Drew Espinosa]

Thought you all might find this interesting.

 

 

[Bill W]

59 minutes ago, Drew Espinosa said:

Thought you all might find this interesting.

 

Neat!  Nature imitating nature.  Very unusual and extremely interesting. 

[sandrewn]

cobweb spider wrapping prey

 

 

[sandrewn]

Sydney funnel-web and White-tailed spiders

 

 

Weak-hearted sea spiders pump blood with their guts

Sea spiders already look decidedly alien, like they’re about to latch onto your face, but now scientists have found they’re equally bizarre on the inside. With weak hearts, the crafty creatures instead use a sprawling system of guts to pump blood and oxygen throughout their bodies.

 

 

[Bill W]

23 hours ago, sandrewn said:

cobweb spider wrapping prey

This reminds me of the body bags they put deceased people in. 

[Bill W]

10 minutes ago, sandrewn said:

Sydney funnel-web and White-tailed spiders

Damn, another spider from Australia.  How many freaking spiders do they have there and how many of those are deadly? 

[Bill W]

12 minutes ago, sandrewn said:

Weak-hearted sea spiders pump blood with their guts

Sea spiders already look decidedly alien, like they’re about to latch onto your face, but now scientists have found they’re equally bizarre on the inside. With weak hearts, the crafty creatures instead use a sprawling system of guts to pump blood and oxygen throughout their bodies.

Sea spiders, does that mean they live near the sea or in the sea?  And that sounds like a neat trick, using your guts to pump blood.  I might try that if I ever have a coronary.  

[sandrewn]

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Edited October 26, 2023 by sandrewn

[sandrewn]

 

 

17 hours ago, Bill W said:

Damn, another spider from Australia.  How many freaking spiders do they have there and how many of those are deadly? 

I found quite a number of references, but this one seems to answer your questions and is good read at the same time.

What species of spiders live in Australia and are they venomous?

 

[sandrewn]

17 hours ago, Bill W said:

Sea spiders, does that mean they live near the sea or in the sea?  And that sounds like a neat trick, using your guts to pump blood.  I might try that if I ever have a coronary.  

My lucky day, I found an answer for each of your posts. Sadly, sea spiders although related to spiders are not the same creatures.

I have heard the expression 'No Guts, No Glory', but I think we are out of luck as far as using our guts to pump blood in case of a coronary. Read the article for an explanation.

Are sea spiders really spiders? : Ocean Exploration Facts: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research

 

Edited October 26, 2023 by sandrewn