Great, now they're swarming (Australia+Spiders).

[weemadando]

Huntsman spiders fight over family home

By ABC Science Online reporter Dani Cooper


The huntsman spider species, Delena cancerides, the only one of the 1,039 known huntsman species that lives a social life with family members. (Dr Linda Rayor)

Battles to the death are taking place across Australia as huntsman spiders fight it out for the family home.

Linda Rayor, a visiting fellow at the Australian National University in Canberra, uncovered the gruesome family feuds while studying the tree-dwelling Delena cancerides spiders.

Dr Rayor, from Cornell University's Department of Entomology, says her study of of the species has shown it is the only one of the 1,039 known huntsman species that lives a social life with family members.

Among the world's 40,000 known spider species only 1 per cent are social, and this species is one of only two that do not spin webs.

Dr Rayor believes the communal lifestyle has been thrust upon the spider by a lack of suitable accommodation in the wild.

And in travels around remote Australia looking for the spider, she found the arachnid is in the midst of a housing crisis.

Scarce habitat

With an adult female weighing up to 4.5 grams and with a leg spread that can exceed 14 centimetres, Dr Rayor says the spider is limited in finding large enough spaces to live.

"They are trying to fit themselves into retreats under the bark of wattle trees and it turns out there are remarkably few of these habitats around," Dr Rayor said.

"You might find two trees by the side of the road that house Delena, and the next trees are a 100 metres or more away.

"The colony is producing all these offspring that want to start their own colony but they have nowhere to go."

Dr Rayor said the nest can be home to more than 100 spiders with up to 30 sub-adults.

"There is nothing like it in the spider world," she said.

In some areas, her team found 100 per cent occupancy of possible habitats with the most "spectacular locations" for the spider about 62 per cent full.

Family ties

But the family ties only bind as long as the mother of the spider nest is alive.

Dr Rayor said the mother defends the nest against predators and seals it off from attack, brings prey home to feed the family, and generally keeps the peace.

However on her death, familial loyalty is forgotten, Dr Rayor said.

Because of the lack of habitats there is intense competition between sexually mature sisters to inherit the family site from the mother, she said.

"I've seen sisters in fights to the death," she said.

Fucking awesome. Social, big and now in looking to take over our homes. I fucking love this country.

[Executor32]

Er, they're looking to take over their mothers' homes, competing against their sisters since suitable habitats for them are few and far between. Methinks you misread something in there.

[weemadando]

Incorrect.

Ask any Australian where you are most likely to find Huntsmen and you'll get one fucking answer.

Inside.

Sure, some of them start outside, but when was the last time you saw a Huntsman outside?

[Shroom Man 777]

*SCREAMS!*

Those are ugly, hideous, motherfuckers!

[Havok]

They look big enough to actually see. I can deal with that. I hope Pounder doesn't stumble through here.

[thejester]

Incorrect.

Ask any Australian where you are most likely to find Huntsmen and you'll get one fucking answer.

Inside.

Sure, some of them start outside, but when was the last time you saw a Huntsman outside?

Anytime I rip the bark off a tree?

[Uraniun235]

I am never moving to Australia.

[Walsh]

Incorrect.

Ask any Australian where you are most likely to find Huntsmen and you'll get one fucking answer.

Inside.

Sure, some of them start outside, but when was the last time you saw a Huntsman outside?

They only seem to head indoors when there is rain coming, from my experience.

They're no big deal anyway, they aren't toxic, they're as dangerous as kittens.

Also, they are a free food source for my bearded dragon.

[Stark]

Huntsmen are pretty cool. The only inconvienience you'll get is if you swing a newspaper at them (they'll either go splat or dump a load of shit on your wall as they scarper) and they eat the shit out of all kinds of other more annoying nonsense. Being ambush predators they enjoy hiding, ie not getting in the way.

Hav, huntsmen are commonly 6-7" across. They can hurt you (they've got huge fucking biting things) but they have zero interest in fucking with humans and will just chill out and leave when you're not looking. Unlike funnel webs, which just go apeshit and will chase you.

[Lusankya]

We always used to have huntsmans living in our house. As far as we were concerned, they were the best form of insect control you could get: environmentally friendly, plus they don't make any webs. It was even better in hatching season when we'd get about a hundred little ones running around. Eventually most of them would wander off, but sometimes we'd be left with two hanging around our house. And two spiders is better than one.

They're completely different from the stupid daddy long-legs that we have everywhere at the moment. We've got a huge spiderweb in our pantry because of the spider in there, and it's rather annoying.

[Shroom Man 777]

We also get those... and I fear.

[Zablorg]

*SCREAMS!*

Those are ugly, hideous, motherfuckers!

Oh please. Their leg-span only grows up to around the size of a fist, tops.

[Lusankya]

Why do you fear? It's not as though their bite can penetrate your skin or anything. They're just annoying, because they seem to make bigger, dustier webs than all of the other kinds of spiders.

[Executor32]

I am never moving to Australia.

Agreed, for these things look horrific and evil and I want to be nowhere near them.

[SilverWingedSeraph]

Pshaw. Huntsmen are harmless, and kind of cute, in a way. I had one living in my bedroom for a while, but I haven't seen it in several weeks, so I assume that it's moved elsewhere or died.

[tim31]

Sure, some of them start outside, but when was the last time you saw a Huntsman outside?

This morning, when I threw three juveniles out of the house. Of course, as we well know, they'll be back. And they'll be bigger, probably having received battlefield commissions.

[weemadando]

All Australian's know that the biggest weapon that huntsman has in it's arsenal is its: "Appear from nowhere directly infront of your eyes while driving in heavy traffic" attack.

Several have done this to me.

None have lived.

And I have not had any at fault collisions.

[Ubiquitous]

All Australian's know that the biggest weapon that huntsman has in it's arsenal is its: "Appear from nowhere directly infront of your eyes while driving in heavy traffic" attack.

Several have done this to me.

None have lived.

And I have not had any at fault collisions.

I wouldn't be able to keep control if that happened. I'd crap my pants!

[Dartzap]

I wouldn't be able to keep control if that happened. I'd crap my pants!

It;'s bad enough when the gulls zoom right up to the windscreen and then go skywards at the last moment

[Vympel]

It's been a Huntsman fucking few months in Australia - there's been a spider boom of all kinds.

I woke up last weekend and saw the familiar shape of a Huntsman on my ceiling, directly above my head. I didn't have my glasses but I knew what it was. I shot out of my bed in two seconds and, as is my usual habit:

1. Looked at it, awkwardly and fearfully, for several seconds. It's not moving.

2. Run upstairs to grab the insect spray. This won't kill a huntsman very quickly - but it will bring it to within striking range for objects of various sorts.

3. Run back downstairs and cautiously re-enter the room, breathing a sigh of relief that the huntsman hasn't moved.

4. Spray the huntsman, while standing on top of the bed, as far the fuck away from it as possible.

5. It immediately starts moving. I grab an implement to hit it as it makes its way down the wall.

6. It's a bad idea to try and hit a huntsman on a wall. If you miss, the gust of wind from the miss will have it fucking airborne, and who knows where it will end up.

7. I nevertheless tossed Competition Law and Policy at it - a huge fucking tome of some 700 pages. It was pulverized against the wall. Following that, toilet paper, toilet, flush.

Yuck.

My mum was angry and said I should've just left it in there, as it would leave me alone. That's true - it won't bother me. But I don't want to be looking at a 6-inch wide spider for god knows how many days in my bedroom. I don't know what the hell it's doing!

And like I said in the last huntsman thread I put up in November last year - you guys who can just "take Huntsmen outside" as if they're a christmas beetle are psychos.

[tim31]

Vymp, it doesn't mean I'm not whimpering as I do it; if they're over 10cm legspan, I usually toss the container into the yard and let them evacuate it in their own time. The trink is to get them on a flat surface, close a transparent container over the top, slide a stiff peice of paper or card between the rim of the container and the surface, then carry your spider jar outside and release.

I once tried to coax one down the wall with a broom so I could do this. It jumped onto the broom handle and advanced toward me.

I tell you gang, if they ever stop fighting amongst each other as in the OP and form an alliance to make our homes theirs, we're done for.

[Stark]

Every time a big manly man throws a wobbly and says 'zomg Stark take the scary instrument of terror outside', it's fucking hilarious. What's it going to do? Give me cooties? Phase through the icecream container? Fire lasers from it's eyes like in SimAnt?

Irrational fears are the most amusing of all.

[tim31]

Every time a big manly man throws a wobbly and says 'zomg Stark take the scary instrument of terror outside', it's fucking hilarious. What's it going to do? Give me cooties? Phase through the icecream container? Fire lasers from it's eyes like in SimAnt?

How can you guarentee that they can't do that??

[Molyneux]

Huntsmen are pretty cool. The only inconvienience you'll get is if you swing a newspaper at them (they'll either go splat or dump a load of shit on your wall as they scarper) and they eat the shit out of all kinds of other more annoying nonsense. Being ambush predators they enjoy hiding, ie not getting in the way.

Hav, huntsmen are commonly 6-7" across. They can hurt you (they've got huge fucking biting things) but they have zero interest in fucking with humans and will just chill out and leave when you're not looking. Unlike funnel webs, which just go apeshit and will chase you.

...you're shitting me.
There are spiders that can bite through a toenail, hide in shoes, have some truly nasty venom and will fucking chase you? How fast do they move?!

...if I ever go to Australia, I'm building spider-proof armor first. Half-inch steel plate should be a nice start.

[Stark]

Huh? Huntsmen don't have effective poison, they have rending talons. Smaller spiders like funnel webs etc have extremely dangerous poisons, but so long as there's someone else there (to call an ambulance) you'll probably be fine.

Funnel webs don't go very fast, but unlike most spiders will actually attack you: they don't bite once and run away, they'll bite as much as they can - I dimly recall some guy getting bitten hundreds of times by a bunch of funnel webs hiding in his pool filter. It's not a reflex: they want to kill you. Angry sons of bitches. Luckily they're not common in Brisbane.

What's that spider species that runs/jumps at you? I've only seen a few in Brisbane, I think they're more a cold state thing. They're like mini-huntsmen I think, and a few winters ago they chased a friend of mine out of her living room. I think it shook her sense of humans being masters of nature.