Meet Hungry

Probably the most intimate new animal friend I made over the course of the holiday season was my new Pal "Hungry." It was eight in the morning and I had just dragged myself out of bed. My mom asked me to go to our dank old basement to bring up some logs for the fire. I brought up an armful and, putting some fresh wood on the coals, noticed a spider on it. Not wanting to harm such a cute arachnid, I retrieved the log from the coals and brought it to our front porch, where I deposited the spider. A minute later I felt a sharp pain on my upper spine. Reaching under my shirt I found Hungry the Barn Spider. He had crawled under my clothes while I was in the basement and then tried to kill me with a painful bite! He did this EVEN AFTER I HAD SAVED ONE OF HIS OWN FROM A FIERY DEATH. I kept Hungry for several days in a jar to insure that his bite was not venomous. Over the time of his incarceration we got to know each other better and, dare I say, I forgave him for his crime. Before I left I freed him in our drafty old barn, where, he has promised to bite my father sometime next summer. Notice the death's head design on his thorax and his big mandibles, pretty creepy!

Mostly I miss the spiders.

A lot of people in Chicago ask me if I miss Austin, Texas. Well, I miss a lot about the Lone Star State. The BBQ, the music, the cold beer on a hot day, and the friendly folks come to mind. But mostly I miss the huge-ass spiders and waking up with strange bug bites. In honor of THAT Texas, I present this photo from past September.

Orchard Spider - Leucauge Venusta

Do you ever feel that the people who print animal; (and bug) identification books are out to get you? I feel like they monitor the internet to ensure that there is a lack of good info out there for free so you have to buy the book. Its sometimes like looking for good guitar tablature online. Well I have found a wonderful SPIDER website that will make it easier for all of us to identify our eight legged friends like this ORCHARD SPIDER!!! It is Spiderzrule.com and I will link to it to the right! Good day!

Building Her Web

Hey! Remember "SPIDERS IN OUR WORLD?"

I caught one in the act!!!! Here is a spider constructing the most perfect trap.

The Cave of the Water Spider

The video posted above stands as a testiment to the fact that Creature Comforts (TM) will go to every length possible to deliver the worlds BEST nature photography. In our voyage up Bull Creek we risked life and limb to photograph one of the largest spiders that ever lived. As you can see, I almost died!

Spiders in Our World: Cave Spiders

As a final installment (for now) of "Spiders in Our World." I give you a spider that lives in a cave. It builds tunnels with its web and waits patiently for its dinner. If you haven't noticed yet, spiders have many eyes.

Spiders in Our World: The Itsy Bitsy Spider

Call me crazy, but I almost think this little guy is kind of cute looking. He was definitely hamming it up for the camera, but I forgive the cutey.

Spiders in Our World: The Hair Spider

Another big one. I shot this guy in my front yard as night fell over us. I was upset with the falling light but the effect was that the flash picked up all the hair on its legs and body. I woke up the next day to take some video footage, but this spider was gone!

Spiders in Our World: This scared the s--t out of me!

I've never seen a spider with biceps before.
I had planned to go to the zoo, but it looked like rain and no one wanted to go to help with the photo shoot. Instead I decided to check my back yard for new photo ops. Now, I wish I hadn't. This spider was so bad-ass that, while I was trying to take some snapshots, it ate another spider right in front of me (link to blurry photos here.) I include the wider shot in the futile hope of providing some sense of the size of this guy. At first I was afraid to get too close, then I realized that this spider was so powerful he probably wouldn't even waste his time biting a human. He just didn't even care. Click to enlarge, if you dare.

Spiders in Our World: Spiders are Our Friends

This week's group of offerings from Creature Comforts is not for the faint of heart. Heavy rains in Central Texas have meant more bugs, which has translated into more spiders. The "Spiders in Our World" series is a celebration of that fact. I chose this first picture to serve as absolute proof that spiders are our friends! If you look closely you'll see that this arachnid is dispatching a hated "Horse Fly."

Please note: if you have extreme arachnophobia and can't log on while this series runs please let me know. I will be happy to email you some different animal pics to tide you over. You can write animalblog"at"hotmail.com or just leave a comment on this pic.

July 4th Special: A Spider Eating the Hell out of a Butterfly

The way of nature is not always kind, and this picture tells the story. We walked by this butterfly (moth?) and kept wondering if it was alive or dead. On closer inspection I discovered the reason it was moving so erratically. It was dead but was being suspended from a plank of wood by a spider that was simultaneously feeding on it. This spider's strength is commendable. Imagine holding onto this bug while hanging from your feet and eating it at the same time! I will try to identify these bugs and post in the comments. This picture's inherent drama rivals any fireworks display.

WTF?

I don't want this to become a Bug Blog. But WTF with this spider that was outside my door? It is creepy as hell. Can anyone help me identify it? I'll try to get another pic that demonstrates its size, its a big one.