Every day or so I walk over to the mailbox to check on Pythagoras. I hate to report that I haven't seen him in over a week, although I did find a snake skin while tidying up the flower bed there.
Today I saw something far more ominous in the snake den -- a female black widow spider. She's big. Real big. And apparently has been there for a while. Some disorganized spider web stands started appearing in and around the rock pile a few weeks back. I ignored it. Spider webs are a penny a dozen around here. This one has gradually grown larger, until this afternoon when I saw the really big black widow sitting right smack in the center of the chaos. I went for my camera, but PDM spooked her into hiding before I could get a photo.
It makes me wonder what is lurking just below the visible when I am out blissfully elbow deep in plants, taking care of my gardens. I've already been stung by a wasp that I didn't see hiding in my daffodils. I've also literally had ants in my pants. Wonder what trouble I'll get into next? Hopefully something easily identifiable with a readily available anti-venom.
11 comments:
Boy, your posts of late have been a bit ominous -to my way of looking at things. First snakes, now black widow spiders! Hope you don't see anymore of these things cause it's starting to give me the heebie-jeebies!
Oh and just noticed this too -the word for my word verification here tonight is "clate" -which is my son's nickname (short for Clayton). Nothing eerie about that -or at least I don't think there is. LOL Now, don't go getting bit by any of these creatures roaming about your place!
KEEEEEL EEET!!! See a lot of them around these parts. I never leave one alive. They are the most poisonous spider in the country.
I would be freaking out. When I lived in CO, we had those windspiders. OMG those things were the creepiest things ever. I hated them.
Message heard loud and clear! Will be killing all spider life (and whatever else) in that area. Go chemicals, go!
Since I haven't seen Pythy in more than a week now, I wonder if she killed him. Or maybe the hawks got him. Hopefully he just moved on.
i agree with LL on this one. Look up the diagnosis with BW bites. They are worse than brown recluse. They will kill you or give you major nerve damage in the area bit.
Brown Recluse will give you the flesh eating icky. My friend Russ got bit by one of them and lost a large chunk of thigh and they stopped him from driving over the road.
Be careful.
Spray? You don' need no steenkin' spray...
Stick work fine. (Then you know the job is done right)
I wouldn't have a problem smacking her with a hard object if I could find her again. Problem is I don't know where she's hiding. So I sprayed the hell out of her web once last night and again this morning.
I removed the web and the pile of rocks today and found no trace of the black widow, dead or alive. Did find her egg sac though. Cut it open, stomped on the emerging spiders, then sprayed the shit out of it with my bug killer. Pretty sure they's all dead now...
No sign of Pythagoras either. He either slithered off to new adventures, or he's gone to that sunny rock pile in the sky.
Burn the bodies, then flush the ashes. And don't forget to tear the ship apart until you've found those plans!
What if it's a trap?
yea I always heard you were suppose to burn the egg sac too! baby widows have more venmon than the big ones
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