Re: Spiders
From: "Jan Clark" <janclarx@hotmail.com>
> "The myth about daddy longlegs seems to have its origin in the
>publication years ago of some preliminary work done on the venoms
>of Australian spiders," Shear says. "In Australia, the name 'daddy
>longlegs' is actually applied to a spider, a member of the family
>Pholcidae, our cellar spiders. Supposedly the venom was tested
>and found to be very potent, but the spiders are so small that they
>constitute no danger at all to humans. Because of the same
>common name being applied to two very different animals, this big
>misunderstanding has resulted."
>
>I know this isn't about irises per se. But as a boy I played with
>these things being taught (correctly, it seems) that they were a
>harmless and beneficial creature and only recently was told they
>were among the most poisonous of the spider family. With the
>recent discussion of ants, and knowing that anyone who gardens
>is very likely to run across lots of critters of one sort or another,
>and since the quote came from and iris-talk member, I thought
>it apropos to post here as an OT. Before we take action, it
>would probably be well to understand the object of the action.
>
>Donald Eaves
I played with these lovely creatures as a child too, Donald. I loved the
feeling of them running across my hand with their hair like legs.
We occasionally find redback spiders, and white tails, in the house, and
they seem to have no malicious intent. I usually squash poisonous spiders,
and pick up the big hairy ones and the big black ones (sorry, no names come
to mind) with a drinking glass and release them. The tiny ones, I co-habit
with happily.
I was recently asked by a city dweller, why didn't I have the house sprayed,
and my answer was that I would rather co-habit with something fairly unlikey
to hurt me, than breathe toxic fumes, which might do all sorts of damage to
my health.
If I had funnel webs in the house, I might think again, but thankfully we
don't have them this far south.
I think this is a relevant topic to iris growers. I try and wear gloves when
handling pots, as the large tubs have a dry area under the rim, which makes
a great spider house. It would be a wasteful, and costly process to spray
under the rims, every time I want to move a pot.
Cheers, Jan Clark (Australia)
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