it's like a nature documentary in my bathroom

[ratcreature]

For quite some time there has been a big spider living in my bathroom (not tropical spider big, but really big for these parts). Since there are no dangerous ones here, I have nothing against spiders (as long as they don't drop onto me) so I left it in peace. And just now I looked at its web (it's visible from my toilet, so I can't help but notice the developments), and I think it must have reproduced, because there are now something like two dozen tiny things in the web, which has a different shape than usual too, like with a ball structure in the middle rather than just a few strands (it never made a really nice regular web, just some threads). And while I can't get quite close enough without a ladder to be a hundred percent certain, I'm fairly sure the tiny things look like lots of little spiders. So now there is a developing nest of them or something. I don't think I've ever actually seen (or rather noticed) baby spiders outside of nature documentaries before.

Comments

[lilacsigil]

Yay spiders! There's lots of dangerous ones here (more of the "bite you and give you necrosis" than the "kill you with poison" types, though) but I'll always put them outside rather than kill them. I wish I could leave them inside, though!

[ratcreature]

Yeah, I doubt I'd be as sanguine about spiders in Australia... But I think the only poisonous one in Germany that can have a serious effect on humans only lives in a tiny corner in the south, because it actually likes a more mediterranean climate, and it doesn't live in houses, so mostly it's too cold and wet for it. There is one garden spider that may bite people if it is extremely threatened and can't flee (though I have never actually known anyone to be bitten), but it fangs are too small to pierce far, so at worst it's like a bee sting I'm told. We do have the hobo spider that Americans claim bites people with some effects, but in Europe it doesn't and here it doesn't move into houses either, so whatever mutant specimens invaded America, it's not like that here.

In any case I appreciate that spiders don't actually want to eat me, and may keep other pests down, like mosquitoes, whose bites swell to larger than my palm, because I react badly, or the frelling moths I can't seem to get completely rid off, despite putting up several pheromone traps, and keeping my pantry clean.

[lilacsigil]

I appreciate that spiders don't actually want to eat me, and may keep other pests down, like mosquitoes

Exactly! This is why I try to persuade everyone not to kill spiders, but whenever I'm not around, I know they do! (Exceptions only for redbacks, because they can actually kill you with a bite. It's mostly huntsman spiders around here, though.)

[astridv]

Cool. Can you take a picture?
I had a fairly big cocoon in my room once. I waited until the tiny spiders were hatched and when they started crawling around I caught most of them and took them out of my room. I don't mind spiders in my room but that was a *lot* of spiders.

[ratcreature]

Yeah, as it happens I actually just took a picture, because it occurred to me it might be neat to see whether I could document the babies' growth:

[astridv]

Aww, that is kind of cute. Not puppy level cute, but still.

[ratcreature]

You can project dedicated motherhood at least, with the big one hovering near all these tiny babies.

[liviapenn]

Wow, when you just posted about it I was like "EUGHHHH" (even though I also prefer spiders to moths) but that picture is... actually kind of cute. ^_^

[ratcreature]

I wouldn't go quite as far as cute, but they aren't gross to look at. At least these spiders don't seem to be the kind that madly skitter around, or drop on you. I find unexpected critter touches much freakier than seeing them, also them just popping up in unexpected places. A few days ago I encountered a centipede scurrying around on my wall of all places, which I found bizarre, because, how did it even get there? I mean, aren't these supposed to be outside under stones or somewhere? I'm on the fifth floor (sixth as the US counts), and no balcony or indoor greenery besides one lemon tree growing in a pot. So the surprise centipede was somewhat icky, and hard to catch too. Though eventually I did manage to throw it outside.