Don't Try This At Home

[LBS-bass]

Had the brilliant idea to purchase some egg carton foam tiles because I wanted one to set my bass head on to keep it from rattling on top of the cabinet. Worked well enough for that purpose. I keep my rig in the rehearsal studio when I'm not playing out; the studio is a converted garage.

Went to grab my gear for a show yesterday and when I picked up the head, I felt some cobwebs on the side of it. Didn't think much of it, picked up the head and packed it up, and then grabbed the foam pad to put into my go bag. Carried it across the room and set it down, went to grab my bag and then went to pick up the foam to put it in the bag when she caught my eye. A very freaked-out black widow spider was hunkering down in one of the egg-carton depressions.

Well, I let out a little squeal then picked the foam up and tossed it out the back door, spider and all. Grabbed a fresh tile (had to buy six of them) to take to the show. Will use two of them locked together from now on so that they don't provide another home for wayward critters.

I can't imagine what a good time she must have had during our rehearsal the other night. She's undoubtedly happier in the yard.

Note: They rarely bite and are very shy. I don't mind having them around (outside), just don't like almost grabbing one with my unsuspecting fingers.

 

[Baaad65]

.... ya and after sex with them don't they kill you by biting your head off...think our son dated a few of those

 

[Baaad65]

You wouldn't have those if you want to move up here, it's 8 degrees right now with a layer of ice on everything, tomorrow night will be -5

 

[bonin in the boneyard]

.... ya and after sex with them don't they kill you by biting your head off...think our son dated a few of those

The prevalence of sexual cannibalism, a behaviour in which the female eats the male after mating, has inspired the common name "widow spiders".[9] This behaviour may promote the survival odds of the offspring;[10] however, females of some species only rarely show this behaviour, and much of the documented evidence for sexual cannibalism has been observed in laboratory cages where the males could not escape. Male black widow spiders tend to select their mates by determining if the female has eaten already to avoid being eaten themselves. They are able to tell if the female has fed by sensing chemicals in the web.[11][12] Latrodectus hesperus is referred to as an "opportunistic cannibal" because in dire situations it will resort to cannibalism.[13] In addition to sexual cannibalism, Latrodectus hesperus are also known to engage in sibling cannibalism.[14]

 

[bonin in the boneyard]

So that's the trick: never bring crazy home, and never use your real last name.

 

[Baaad65]

So that's the trick: never bring crazy home, and never use your real last name.

....and make sure you give her a good dinner before sex then get the hell out of there before she wants a midnight snack

 

[Baaad65]

The prevalence of sexual cannibalism, a behaviour in which the female eats the male after mating, has inspired the common name "widow spiders".[9] This behaviour may promote the survival odds of the offspring;[10] however, females of some species only rarely show this behaviour, and much of the documented evidence for sexual cannibalism has been observed in laboratory cages where the males could not escape. Male black widow spiders tend to select their mates by determining if the female has eaten already to avoid being eaten themselves. They are able to tell if the female has fed by sensing chemicals in the web.[11][12] Latrodectus hesperus is referred to as an "opportunistic cannibal" because in dire situations it will resort to cannibalism.[13] In addition to sexual cannibalism, Latrodectus hesperus are also known to engage in sibling cannibalism.[14]

So Fd up

 

[armyadarkness]

almost grabbing one with my unsuspecting fingers.

OMG! This is hot!

 

[armyadarkness]

Had the brilliant idea to purchase some egg carton foam tiles because I wanted one to set my bass head on to keep it from rattling on top of the cabinet. Worked well enough for that purpose. I keep my rig in the rehearsal studio when I'm not playing out; the studio is a converted garage.

Went to grab my gear for a show yesterday and when I picked up the head, I felt some cobwebs on the side of it. Didn't think much of it, picked up the head and packed it up, and then grabbed the foam pad to put into my go bag. Carried it across the room and set it down, went to grab my bag and then went to pick up the foam to put it in the bag when she caught my eye. A very freaked-out black widow spider was hunkering down in one of the egg-carton depressions.

Well, I let out a little squeal then picked the foam up and tossed it out the back door, spider and all. Grabbed a fresh tile (had to buy six of them) to take to the show. Will use two of them locked together from now on so that they don't provide another home for wayward critters.

I can't imagine what a good time she must have had during our rehearsal the other night. She's undoubtedly happier in the yard.

Note: They rarely bite and are very shy. I don't mind having them around (outside), just don't like almost grabbing one with my unsuspecting fingers.

You can sprinkle some diatomaceous earth around your setup, to safely prevent this in the future.

 

[armyadarkness]

So that's the trick: never bring crazy home, and never use your real last name.

It's remarkable how much this resembles my game. I always look for the chicks who already ate dinner.

 

[bonin in the boneyard]

You can sprinkle some diatomaceous earth around your setup, to safely prevent this in the future.

Spiders are allergic to toothpaste?

 

[armyadarkness]

I thought everyone knew that! They hate minty fresh breath.

 

[bonin in the boneyard]

I thought everyone knew that! They hate minty fresh breath.

Sounds like you're not getting your yearly recommended allowance of 12 baby arachnids!

 

[LBS-bass]

Sounds like you're not getting your yearly recommended allowance of 12 baby arachnids!

I'm just glad she wasn't in there long enough to produce any baby arachnids. She can have all the babies she wants to now that she's outside.

Those things are all over the place outside; it would be silly to kill her because it'd be like taking one drop of water out of the swimming pool. But, like I said, they are very shy and won't bite unless extremely distressed. If they were aggressive, all of my dogs would be long dead because they romp in the ivy and underbrush out there all summer long. I don't worry about them.

 

[Equill]

Can confirm that they're shy and won't bite if they don't have to; we had a massive redback infestation In our last house in Sydney. For those not familiar, redbacks are basically black widows that hitched a ride over to Australia to find better beaches. A few of those made it across the Tasman Sea to NZ, where they're known as Katipo.

We already knew there were some spiders in the ceiling cavity, because we'd seen a couple run across the skylight. The people who owned the house were partway through renovating when they ran out of money, which is why they started renting it out. Among other things, they hadn't gotten around to building an enclosing tube between the skylight panel in the roof, and the one in the kitchen ceiling.
...so the redbacks built their own one. Seriously, when we went up to take a look, there was a near-complete cylinder of web about 3 feet high. Why? They feed on flying insects, which are generally attracted to bright lights, and that was letting Australian sunshine into an otherwise dark space.

My partner decided enough was enough when she got out of the shower and wrapped her hair in a towel, and a redback fell past her face to the floor. We called in an exterminator.

He'd never seen so many redbacks in one place, at one time, in his entire career.

Like with our incident with the baby tiger snake, nobody got bitten. They're gentle critters; just be careful about picking up bits of wood from the ground, and you're fine.