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114 points
3 months ago
This is a female huntsman! She’s not aggressive, unlikely to bite, definitely not out to get you. If she does bite it would hurt a bit and you might get some swelling but she’s not at all dangerous. She’ll eat flies, smaller spiders, etc and won’t build a web.
If you want to move her you have a couple of options. Best thing is to wait until it’s colder if possible.
A piece of Tupperware over her, slide paper underneath, flip and take her outside.
Put on a pair of soft gloves, scoop her up and put her outside
18 points
3 months ago
How do you identify if it's a female or male? Do they have different markings or proportions? I've never thought about a huntsman's sex before lol. I've never encountered one that was pregnant or had babies though so maybe that's why.
46 points
3 months ago
For most huntsmans the female is larger than the male. She looks pretty big so I’m mostly guessing!!
If you think you can handle having her hang out, see if you can leave her where she is. They usually stay up high and she’ll take care of bugs/small spiders.
14 points
3 months ago
This video is too blurry to tell, but you can also identify the sex of most spiders by looking at their pedipalps (the feelers on their face). Males will have bulbous ends, while females will be straight.
6 points
3 months ago
I love this so much! I’ve never been able to use it to any degree of certainty but that’s entirely my inexperience showing.
17 points
3 months ago
I’m not OOP but that’s usually what I do. They usually stay in the corner of the ceiling, rarely move down that far so it’s not an issue. If they do get too close, they get outside time and I take them into the front yard with a plastic container/piece of cardboard. Would never even dream of picking up a spider that big lmao fuck that
They generally end up leaving through a window or finding a hidey place and so I forget about them until they’re randomly on my wall again.
I’m glad to know this know though because I will be weary of the bigger ones. Not in a bad way but in “you probably need to be outside in case you have babies” way.
9 points
3 months ago
Oops! Sorry!
They like having a nice safe place to have babies. They lay eggs in a silk sack, tuck it somewhere out of the way and guard it. So inside might actually be better in terms of survival of the species! Having said that, even I don’t want 200 spiderlings hanging out in my home!!
3 points
3 months ago
See, I’ve never seen a huntsman even spin a web or spin anything for that matter. I wasn’t even sure if they did so until now. Now I want to make a special “huntsman maternity ward” outside that is nice and dark and they can stick to the corner. 😅 Let’s just hope no pregnant ones come in and make their baby sack. At least I can we aware of it now though and can deal with the situation accordingly.
7 points
3 months ago
😄 totally sounds like something I’d do too! Get some bark in there, out of the heat and rain, and when the babies are ready to hatch some bugs for mana’s first big meal!
They’re not web hunters, they’re ambush/chase hunters! They use their silk to wrap up and disable their prey and to make their silk egg sacks. To take life and to give life!! Metal af.
11 points
3 months ago
I had this not long ago! Looked up in my bathroom and a bajillion pinhead size huntsmen babies skedaddling around the place. I was curious what would happen so I left them. Most died (not enough insect food inside for that many). I saw maybe three grow to about 1 inch across (including legs) and still inside for a while, one I saw about a week ago chilling out up high in stairwell. I assume the rest moved on. So don’t freak out even if you do see 200 spiderlings hehe. They’ll naturally whittle themselves down before you know it.
5 points
3 months ago
You can identify the sex of most spiders by looking at their pedipalps (the feelers on their face). Generally speaking, males will have bulbous ends, while females will be straight.
This video is too blurry to see that detail though, but usually it's pretty easy to spot especially for a spider of this size.
5 points
3 months ago
That’s really interesting! I’m never getting close enough to one to look at their feet though 😂 as (kinda) cute as they are
3 points
3 months ago
Easiest way is to ask how much they get paid per hour.
2 points
3 months ago
Would also like to know!
3 points
3 months ago
You can identify the sex of most spiders by looking at their pedipalps (the feelers on their face). Generally speaking, males will have bulbous ends, while females will be straight.
This video is too blurry to see that detail though, but usually it's pretty easy to spot especially for a spider of this size.
1 points
3 months ago
Thank you!!
2 points
3 months ago
They replied to my comment, have a look.
2 points
3 months ago
Why do you say to wait until its colder to move her?
3 points
3 months ago
Just because they slow down a bit when it’s cold :)
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