spiders
November 24, 2005 11:04 PM   Subscribe

 
*faints*
posted by maryh at 11:08 PM on November 24, 2005


and just for kicks: a creationist looks at spiders in the book "The miracle in the spider"
posted by dhruva at 11:08 PM on November 24, 2005


Uh... the "myth" spider is a giant walking penis. Seriously. Crazy Japanese, with their anthropomorphic spider penis mythologies.
posted by jonson at 11:15 PM on November 24, 2005


Spiders. I'm for 'em.
posted by bat at 11:26 PM on November 24, 2005


great, now I feel them all over me.
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 11:46 PM on November 24, 2005


the problem with spiders is that they're technically so awesome, but then they have to be so.... ugh... squicky... at the same time. I have to flush them after I kill them just to make sure they don't come back and eat me in the morning.
posted by BuddhaInABucket at 11:50 PM on November 24, 2005


Damn you dhruva. I was about to go to bed too. Oh well, good time for a walk I suppose.
posted by panoptican at 11:51 PM on November 24, 2005


You should really warn people about spiders ~shudders~
posted by fshgrl at 12:06 AM on November 25, 2005


Excellent! Years ago my mate and I were obsessed for ages watching a spider in a small lagoon in a National Park in southern Sydney that appeared to spin a sailing web on a leaf and proceed to the other side under wind power. My mate thought later that what we saw had something to do with hallucinogens. I couldn't get close enough to check their eyes.
posted by peacay at 12:38 AM on November 25, 2005


This is your spider on drugs.
posted by Gyan at 12:52 AM on November 25, 2005


Thanks for that, Gyan. Fascinating. Where's the spider on ritalin? Oh, I see, the web was too big.
posted by Goofyy at 1:29 AM on November 25, 2005


Quick let's all take drugs so we mess up the spiders that are going to eat us!
posted by srboisvert at 2:01 AM on November 25, 2005


I like spiders. They're distinctive, and odd, and even a little elegant.
But damn, they're creepy.
posted by NinjaPirate at 2:16 AM on November 25, 2005


I now deem, as ruler of my domicile, that all spiders exeeding one half inch in diameter be banished, forthwith, from said domicile. Let it be done.
posted by recurve at 4:55 AM on November 25, 2005


The spider is the also first known predator that deliberately feeds on vertebrate blood by eating mosquitoes.

The finding raises the possibility that other spiders also have a taste for human and mammal blood, the researchers add.


I knew it. They're developing a taste for human flesh. Lovely post otherwise, dhruva.
posted by LeeJay at 6:10 AM on November 25, 2005


AUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!
[/arachnophobe who's nevertheless unable to not click the (good) links]
posted by WolfDaddy at 6:11 AM on November 25, 2005


That was awesome, thanks!
posted by dobie at 6:58 AM on November 25, 2005


Anyone ever read that chapter Richard Dawkins wrote on the adaptive foundation for the web and it's form?

Uh, that was pretty cool.
posted by sourwookie at 7:31 AM on November 25, 2005


Eight legs good.
posted by leebree at 7:34 AM on November 25, 2005


[/arachnophobe who's nevertheless unable to not click the (good) links] - WolfDaddy
Funny, I associate your username with spiders for some reason.

I love spiders. They eat the other nasty bugs that I don't like.
posted by raedyn at 8:15 AM on November 25, 2005


Once I got over my initial bout of arachnophobia, I enjoyed this post a lot. My mind is still reeling a little over the woman who paints on spider webs-- I keep trying to imagine her husband struggling to keep them intact as he collects them in their garden...
In case anyone has a burning need to know what to call that 8 Legged Freak in the bathroom, this site answers your questions and has some great photos. (And I've learned I'm more creeped out by pictures of spiders than spiders themselves. Go figure.)
posted by maryh at 9:39 AM on November 25, 2005


Great links, fascinating topic, but ... eeeeek! I did not dare click these links before bed last night.

If spiders creep you out, you should apparently avoid hiking in Taiwan
posted by madamjujujive at 10:04 AM on November 25, 2005


BuddhainaBucket said it for me.
posted by five fresh fish at 10:19 AM on November 25, 2005




I hate to be the one to fulfill stereotypes, but:

*shrieks*
*faints*



(excellent post, btw)
posted by kosher_jenny at 2:13 PM on November 25, 2005


Stirfry: thanks for the poem link. I maintain a spiderblog (selflink), if anyone's interested in more spidery goodness :)
posted by dhruva at 7:43 PM on November 25, 2005




There's been a report of a spider landing on a ship that was more than 500km from the nearest land, but I don't remember where I read that. Juvenile spiders do this 'flying' mode of dispersal frquently, technically called ballooning.
posted by dhruva at 9:48 PM on November 25, 2005


One of those ships was the Beagle.
posted by stirfry at 12:30 PM on November 26, 2005


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