sagira Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 Hi, all: We caught a spider this morning that we can't identify. I took a picture of it while it was standing on our wall, then put in a jar poked with holes. It's about two inches across, and its body is flat. We live in South Florida, more specifically, the Florida Keys. Has anyone seen or heard of this spider? We're curious and want to know if it's dangerous or not! Here's the link to its picture: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=683312&l=a20f1fc4fd&id=1033109413 TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ma23peas Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 Well, it's missing a leg! :) It is not a brown recluse as someone on your FB suggested...I have been bit by one, our dog died from a bite and we found 25 in our house last year, I have become an expert at brown recluses!! They also almost never get bigger than a half dollar size.... Looks similar to a fishing spider...but check out this site http://www.spiderzrule.com/spiderphotos063.htm You're not alone!! :) Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlockOfSillies Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 Google "spider identification photos." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle in MO Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 I don't think it's a brown recluse, because they're common in Missouri (fortunately we haven't had any at our house!). They have a lighter violine or guitar-shape marking on their backs. I avoid them! (Confession: we have our house sprayed for this very reason; I don't want to have to deal with brown recluse spider bites.) I would avoid it, too, until you can positively identify it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted August 29, 2009 Author Share Posted August 29, 2009 Thanks. I don't think it looks like a brown recluse at all. There are so many spiders out there! We've seen several of these in our house -- dh kills them promptly. He hates bugs and sees anything like a spider as a threat to his house LOL So this one is still hanging out in its jar. I'm going to see if it will eat an ant or two. That's all I can think of feeding him/her right now. I've seen a lot of pictures already, but so far none that look like it. I thought someone here may have seen it and tried my luck here and at Facebook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna T. Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 We think it is a Wandering Spider. There are more than one kind. They are common in South Florida as most of them are imported from Cuba or South America. Some of them are very dangerous, especially the Brazilian Wandering Spider. They usually come into South Florida through shipments of bananas. But, we aren't sure what kind you have there. It does look like some type of Wandering Spider though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassenach Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 It looks like a banana spider to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 Can't identify it for you but had a funny little conversation about it. Me: Look. Pretty spider DH: Since when do you ever call a spider pretty? Me: It ain't on MY wall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna T. Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 (edited) Can you tell how many rows of eyes it has? We think it is a Selenopid Crab Spider, a type of Wandering Spider. It has a flat body. Their eyes are different from other Wandering Spiders. 6 of their 8 eyes are in a single, front row. Each leg ends in 2 claws. They are tropical spiders and are usually/typically found in the Southwest but are being imported into south Florida through ships. If it runs sideways when it is alerted, you have a crab spider. Here is a pix from Florida Nature. http://www.floridanature.org/photos/Selenopidae_1,_Dalray_Beach,_2002.jpg Edited August 29, 2009 by Donna T. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 (edited) They are just called wood spiders around us. Probably because they like to live in wood walls. :) They can get twice that big. We had one sitting in the middle of our bathtub. The legs came up both sides. We took a picture - it was really huge! We used to have two fairly big ones that lived in our bathroom that we named Hairy and Sally. They keep down the insect population. They are timid. I've never heard of one biting a person, but have never really researched it. ETA - We also get quite a few brown recluse - much smaller with round bodies and skinnier legs. And we get banana spiders - they are about that size, but skinnier legs with a more black/white or black/yellow stiped leg and almost always found in a web. Edited August 29, 2009 by Melissa B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna T. Posted August 29, 2009 Share Posted August 29, 2009 Yep, they are house spiders. They burrow in the cracks of a house. They do not build webs at all. And, they are harmless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted August 30, 2009 Author Share Posted August 30, 2009 Can't identify it for you but had a funny little conversation about it. Me: Look. Pretty spider DH: Since when do you ever call a spider pretty? Me: It ain't on MY wall. :lol: It IS two inches in diameter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted August 30, 2009 Author Share Posted August 30, 2009 Thank you! I think that's what it is -- the Selenopid Crab Spider. That's what it is. All right! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yslek Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 The chances of identifying the exact spider just by its looks are pretty slim: http://www.washington.edu/burkemuseum/spidermyth/myths/easy.html. I highly recommend the spider myths site! I seem to be referencing it a lot lately.... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Can you tell how many rows of eyes it has? We think it is a Selenopid Crab Spider, a type of Wandering Spider. It has a flat body. Their eyes are different from other Wandering Spiders. 6 of their 8 eyes are in a single, front row. Each leg ends in 2 claws. They are tropical spiders and are usually/typically found in the Southwest but are being imported into south Florida through ships. If it runs sideways when it is alerted, you have a crab spider. Here is a pix from Florida Nature. http://www.floridanature.org/photos/Selenopidae_1,_Dalray_Beach,_2002.jpg You gotta get wayyyy too close to a spider to see its eyes! LOL That is one that I would hope wanders on away from my wall! It is not a banana spider (as on pp mentioned) - those are usually bright yellow (hence banana) and their legs are really strange too - they don't go around the the spider, but more front and back. Here is a banana spider. They get BIG. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovedtodeath Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 (edited) All I know is that jumping spiders are safe enough to catch and keep. All others are considered dangerous. (per our pet bugs book) Jumping spiders are pretty easy to identify. They have 2 huge eyes. As for the myth site, I think it is telling us we cannot identify the species. I could be wrong, but in most cases we are merely trying to identify the family. The jumping spider family contains over 5000 species, for example. Edited August 30, 2009 by Lovedtodeath Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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