Need Help Identifying Spider I do have arachnaphobia you know...

[csp4.0 1]

Well, I was using the computer when I saw this giant unidentified spider. I am just wandering if anyone can help me identify it. The image quality is quite bad, because it is a night-time photograph and I did take this image using my mother's mobile phone, anyway here is the image:

 

underside- i didn't manage to take a picture of its upside before it moved and had to be killed

 

 

I think it is a huntsman spider, but from pictures of them, it looks too dark. I just hope it ain't no spider equivalent to the red-back, the black-widow, or the sydney-funnel-web

Edited January 4, 2008 by csp4.0 (see edit history)

[rayzoredge 2]

Fuzzy picture is fuzzy.

It's REALLY hard to tell what it could be... and I was just going to start narrowing it down starting from where you lived, but you didn't specify a location in your profile.

Check this Wiki article out. Maybe it can be of some help.

Edited January 4, 2008 by rayzoredge (see edit history)

[cangor 0]

It looks like some sort of wolf spider, but I can't say for sure because the picture is pretty blurry.

[csp4.0 1]

I just got another problem, The picture is pretty blurry yes, but my main camera is 'out of town' and so I had to use a mobile phone's 2.0 MP camera on night mode. Anyway, the other problem is... I found a spider looking awfully like a red-back spider underneath my bed. I've seen a red back before, but this time I only got to see its underside before it crept away. What should I do?

[Saint_Michael 3]

Well first I would say congor could right thats its a wolf spider or maybe a brown spider. DUDE!! your best bet is to either find and trap that sucker or get a extermination to to find and kill that thing, one bite and someone could be in a world of hurt, also it could be a Black widow as well which means the danger of getting bitten by that thing is just as bad. So yeah watch out when you put shoes on, open dressers doors or places where they can hide all nice and cosey and pounce on you the moment it gets disturbed.

[anwiii 17]

that's one heck of a spider! does it move quicker than a normal spider? if so, it does look like a wolf spider. if it is, it's pretty harmless. they grow big and rarely bite. they also don't like it around people so it's rare you'll find them in your home. they like it better outside under a pile of wood or somethin' :)if it's a wolf spider, they move quick so it will be hard to catch in a jar. they are runners so if you're good, you can sway him to run to the door to the outside by guiding him. just don't guide him towards under a couch or somewhere else where it will be hard to get to him. if it's a wolf, i wouldn't kill 'm. i personally HATE spiders. i live in missouri and wolf spiders are everywhere here.

[GrinningKittie 0]

I really can't tell what specific kind of spider it is other than it is big and brown. It could be either a wolf spider or a huntsman. .

 

Wolf Spiders are big, brown fast critters who aren't really provoked to bite. If they do bite you the venom is of the mild variety that causes some redness, swelling and of course irritation (however if you are allergic to spiders you would have a much harsher reaction).

 

Wolf Spider:

 

 

 

 

 

Huntsman Spiders ( also called Wood Spiders) are big and brown spiders ( sometimes mistaken for tarantulas......yes they get THAT big sometimes). They aren't out looking for a fight however they will bite you if you mess with it and although the experience won't kill you....you won't want to be bitten again. The pain and swelling can take a couple of days to recover from. By the way they vary in shades of brown as you will see in the picture below it looks rather pale in comparison to the photo originally submitted on this thread. However the darker spider that was submitted would be well within the range of color for this species.

 

 

Huntsman Spider:

 

 

 

A safe rule of thumb to go by when dealing with spiders is if you are unsure about it then leave it alone. Better safe than sorry!

 

Now on to the Victorian Red Back. For those who do not know this is a spider in the Black Widow family. The Red Back (female) is a shiny black spider with the body being a round shape (like a pea though they can get a bit bigger) that is bigger than it's head. It has very long legs which are thin. The difference between the Red Back and the Widow is the markings. The Red Back will usually have a red stripe like mark ( or lightening bolt looking or elongated hour glass shaped ) on its back and may ( or may not) have a smaller reddish hour glass like marking on its underbelly. The Widow has a very similar shape and size of body yet lacks the stripe on the back. Instead it is known for the red hour glass shape on its belly.

Keep in mind that there are brown versions of both species and markings may be somewhat different as described due to age, location and Mother Nature's love of variety. Mind you these descriptions apply only to the female of the species.

Red Backs ( as well as Widows) have a neurotoxin ( a venom that affects your nervous system) that can cause intense pain, chills, muscle spasms, nausea and vomitting. There have been deaths attributed to both species. The venom is Widows seem to be a bit milder than in Red Backs though.

Here I would like to take a moment to dispell the bad PR that this family of spiders have. They are NOT aggressive for starters. Female Red Backs rarely leave their web so getting bitten means you have to directly smack into them. Widows are so shy that they actually weave an escape tunnel in their webs. They would rather run than fight. Neither of these species are aggressive and are in fact quite timid. You are as likely to die from these bites as much as you have a chance to be hit by lightening. Heck even LESS than being hit by lightening.

 

( Female )Victorian Red Back Back View :

 

 

( Female ) Black Widow Belly View :

 

 

 

For those who may not know where you live I am gonna take a stab at it and say.......... AUSTRALIA! YAY! That is where you will find the Wolf Spider, Huntsman and Red Back.

 

I am sorry I could not properly identify your spider, however I hope you and the rest of the readers found this post informative.

[Watermonkey 0]

For the OZ people, we, in the states, even as far north as Washington State, have both Black Widows and those cute furry Wolf spiders. As far as I'm concerned, I welcome the presence of these arachnids because they control the even more annoying insect population. They don't want to have anything to do with humans, so leave 'em alone! They're eating the other insects under their food chain keeping your place a bit cleaner! I encounter Black Widows (or their webs and homes, at least -I don't go looking for them!) inside of cell sites (wireless phones -like AT&T Wireless and Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint) in the central Washington market quite frequently alone with tales of rattlers (snakes) sunning themselves on the front porch of some of the more remote sites. None of them bother me one little bit. Just remember, these wild animals live in their little worlds and they don't want anything to do with you, and they might even help you in ways you don't recognize! The rattler eats rodents and the spiders eat what bothers you most, little flying, biting insects!

[GrinningKittie 0]

*nods with WaterMonkey*Yuppers n puppers about the widow spiders being in the great NW area of the States. Up in WA I spotted a couple of Widow related spiders and of course numerous wolf spiders. What we have to worry about up here though are the Hobo Spiders. There is some debate as to whether their venom causes a necrotizing ( flesh deteriorating ) reaction however there is no debate about their aggressive attitude. Those suckers are fast and looking to fight. LOL! When I was younger we lived in an apartment complex that was right next to a field ( the field now is of course more apartments) and in the winter we would get plagues with arachnids looking for better shelter. The Hobos would have no problem bum rushing you from across the room. It's almost like they were saying "My place! I OWN the living room! GRRRRR!" lol!I too am fond of arachnids and perform a catch and release on them whenever I can. They really are great at pest control and people could really capitalize on that ( just make sure you know what spider you are working with as to it's venom toxicity and personality type). At our last house we had this bush that for some reason during the summer attracted gnats and mosquitoes. It was QUITE annoying because this plant was huge and right out in front of my front door porch. I could not get rid of the plant because I was renting ( and the landlord was a picky person). Well........my friend found a fresh hatched nest of orb weavers on her truck ( a garden variety of spider whose bite is annoying at best unless you are allergic of course, and whose personality is not aggressive). We scooped up a good portion of those babies and put them in that bush ( we took the other babies to other plants too). Let me tell you how HAPPY I was that the summer that came forth was gnat free and mosquito free for my porch! YAY! It was also a great experience to watch them grow, weave webs and go through their courting processes as the year progressed.Go arachnids go!

[A200 0]

I live in Australia. Spiders can get BIG BIG BIG!Although I am terrified of spiders, I blocked images before viewing this thread and read the comments.Huntsman Spiders can get massive, once I went into the bathroom, was happily pooping away, and I looked around and noticed 5 hunstman spiders around... in the corners.Oh and I have to mention some of the real fat hairy spiders my mum has found in our garden- Trapdoors, Funnel Webs are everywhere in the garden. And I don't even live in Sydney, which is where the massive (**MASSIVE**) wolf spiders are.I am in Brisbane, where spiders are everywhere in gardens and at rainy days (today is a rainy day).Enjoy

[Carson 0]

I don't recognize the spider in the first post. The biggest spider here that I've seen is a pathetic 4cm. We have nothing like the spiders in those pictures, and no poisonous ones(except the white-tale which arrived recently from Australia I believe). In fact that's the only poisonous thing we have, how boring is that? I have seen some cool spiders from America though. Sometimes they get caught in shipping containers(although they are dead after they arrive so there is no risk of immigration). Most people are afraid of spiders, but I like them. I heard somewhere that the phobia is because of the way the spiders move, that makes people scared.