I heard that a large portion of the human race is afraid of spiders.

Originally posted by (e)
I had a teacher once who loved to let his tarantula "precious crawl all over my face".

I swear he was having an orgasm right then and there.

it was from the attention he was getting

I hate people that go out of their way to be wierd.

I read on the internet that one guy hadnt got a hair cut for 3 years w/o washing his hair and then when he went to get it cut he ran out screaming and he was found dead  later that day from spiders that were living in his hair. :O

That was one hell of a sentence there buddy.

[GmanJoe]

Originally posted by cloud345
I read on the internet that one guy hadnt got a hair cut for 3 years w/o washing his hair and then when he went to get it cut he ran out screaming and he was found dead  later that day from spiders that were living in his hair. :O

Reeks of Urban legend.

Bob Marley never washed his hair I think.But pot did the spider job instead

[Titan]

Originally posted by cloud345
I read on the internet that one guy hadnt got a hair cut for 3 years w/o washing his hair and then when he went to get it cut he ran out screaming and he was found dead  later that day from spiders that were living in his hair. :O

Whatnq43 you trying to say.

[§ôµÏG®ïñD]

spiders, you people have NO idea what a real spider is, come to Australia, I\'ll give u the crash course.

Funnel Web (Very Nasty)


RedBack


Wolf


White Tail

[GmanJoe]

None of those spiders come close to the nasty Brown Recluse spider. Google Image the thing. Enjoy the rotting flesh.

Yeah but Australlia is like the kingdom of poisonous crap. Snakes, spiders etc.

I saw a show where it said in parts of Australlia these poisonous spiders constantly crawl into shoes so you have to  always bang your shoes to make sure there isnt one in there. It freaked me out, so the shoes I leave in my garage I always bang on them just in case lol

[§ôµÏG®ïñD]

Read up on the sydney funnel web...

My spider is bigger than yours.

hehe.  Aussieland has the Box Jellyfish which IIRC, is the 2nd most venemous creature in the world.  I forget what the first is but I think it\'s in Australia too.

Brown Recluse though is icky fvcking disgusting.  



Can\'t believe that tiny thing can make your flesh rot off for months on end!

Pretty common down south. Good thing I live in civilization.

(ohh ziing)

[Evi]

Good gawd those things are nasty. WTF?!? So tiny, yet the venom is so potent.

Read up on the sydney funnel web...

Funnel-web spiders
Family Hexathelidae

Sydney Funnel-web Spider (Atrax robustus) male.
Photo: M Gray © Australian Museum.

Funnel-web spiders, the most notorious members of our spider fauna, are found only in eastern Australia. There are at least 40 species currently placed in two genera: Hadronyche and Atrax. They are medium to large spiders, varying from 1-5 cm body length. Males are more lightly built than females. Body colour can vary from black to brown but the hard carapace covering the front part of the body is always sparsely haired and glossy. The lateral pair of spinning organs (spinnerets) at the end of the abdomen are longer and easily visible in Atrax spp. but often shorter in Hadronyche spp.

Not all species are known to be dangerous, but several are renowned for their highly toxic and fast acting venom. The male of Atrax robustus, the Sydney Funnel-web Spider, is probably responsible for all recorded deaths (13) and many medically serious bites. This remarkable spider has become a part of Sydney\'s folklore and, although no deaths have been recorded since the introduction of an antivenom in 1981, it remains an icon of fear and fascination for Sydneysiders.

[Evi]

More:

Bite Symptoms

The physical reaction to a brown recluse spider bite depends on the amount of venom injected and an individual\'s sensitivity to it. Some people are unaffected by a bite, whereas others experience immediate or delayed effects as the venom kills the tissues (necrosis) at the site of the bite. Many brown recluse bites cause just a little red mark that heals without event. The vast majority of brown recluse bites heal without severe scarring (http://spiders.ucr.edu/avoidbites.html).

Initially, the bite may feel like a pinprick or go unnoticed. Some may not be aware of the bite for 2 to 8 hours. Others feel a stinging sensation followed by intense pain. Infrequently, some victims experience general systemic reactions that may include restlessness, generalized itching, fever, chills, nausea, vomiting, or shock. A small white blister usually initially rises at the bite site surrounded by a swollen area. The affected area enlarges and becomes red, and the tissue is hard to the touch for some time. The lesion from a brown recluse spider bite is a dry, blue-gray or blue-white, irregular sinking patch with ragged edges and surrounding redness--termed the "red, white, and blue sign." The lesion usually is 1½ inches by 2¾ inches or smaller. Characteristics of a bite are further discussed at http://www.amednews.com/free/hlsa0805.

The bite of the brown recluse spider can result in a painful, deep wound that takes a long time to heal. Fatalities are extremely rare, but bites are most dangerous to young children, the elderly, and those in poor physical condition. When there is a severe reaction to the bite, the site can erupt into a "volcano lesion" (a hole in the flesh due to damaged, gangrenous tissue). The open wound may range from the size of an adult\'s thumbnail to the span of a hand. The dead tissue gradually sloughs away, exposing underlying tissues. The sunken, ulcerating sore may heal slowly up to 6 to 8 weeks. Full recovery may take several months and scarring may remain.

It is difficult for a physician to accurately diagnose a "brown recluse bite" based simply on wound characteristics. It is absolutely necessary to have the spider for a positive identification. Necrotic wounds can result from a variety of agents such as bacteria (Staphylococcus, "flesh-eating" Streptococcus, etc.), viruses, fungi, and arthropods (non-recluse spiders, centipedes, mites, ticks, wasps, bedbugs, kissing bugs, biting flies, etc.). Necrotic conditions also can be caused by vascular and lymphatic disorders, drug reactions, underlying diseases states, and a variety of other agents. An annotated list of conditions that could be mistaken for a brown recluse spider bite is available at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2002/08/05/hlsa0805.htm. Misdiagnosis of lesions as brown recluse bites can delay appropriate care.

Damn recluse: