By Megan Strauss
Australia is a land of spiders
I live in Australia and I like spiders. There, I said it! This wasn’t always how I felt. Not so long ago, I had a so-so attitude to these 8-legged creatures. With a little curiosity and some time, this turned from acceptance to appreciation to downright arachnid enthusiasm.
Australia has, by some estimates, 10,000 species of spiders. Fewer than 3,000 have been scientifically described so far. Some of the most venomous spiders are found here. Take the Sydney funnel-web spider. Its venom is highly toxic to humans. When in Sydney, avoid the urge to touch their funnel-shaped webs! Fortunately, there have been no recorded deaths from Sydney funnel-web bites since anti-venom was introduced in 1981.
Australia also has a reputation for beautiful and less fearsome spiders. Included in this group are the stunning dancing peacock spiders. Australia is a good place for a budding spider enthusiast.
Spider season!
I know spider season has arrived at my house when webs appear on the windows and populate the bushes outside. Suddenly, spiders are tumbling out of my sun-dried clothes, scuttling along the floor, emerging from freshly dug soil, and crawling across my home-grown lettuce.
I’ve never had a strong dislike of spiders, but I’ll admit I was mildly grossed out by the spiders climbing the shower wall and decorating my car mirrors with their cobwebs. During spider season, my car often looks like something out of a Halloween TV special. Spooky!
The large spider in our dining room
I can’t recall who noticed her first, but one day there she was. A large, hairy-legged black spider had set up her egg sac in a nook near the corner of our dining room ceiling. I worried she might be venomous. So did my family members and the mildly disgusted friends who visited. At the same time, I was curious about her.
I started checking on her every day at a respectful distance. I became more curious. I took photos of her with my phone. We mused about her life story each night over dinner. How many babies was she going to have? Would there soon be large spiders everywhere?!
Finally, I decided to stop worrying and start learning. I used an app called iNaturalist to identify her. Not only was it easy, but the result was good news. Our large housemate was an appropriately-named black house spider. Not deadly after all.
This experience made me rethink my relationship with spiders. Why didn’t I notice them the same way I noticed fluffy animals and the plants in my garden?
Meet the spiders
Once I figured out how easy it was to identify spiders with iNaturalist, I started seeing spiders everywhere. I spotted many kinds of spiders in many sizes, shapes, and colors. I wondered more about them. What type they were, what they ate, and how they hunted.
The ogre-faced spider has a great name and looks awesome. A notable feature is their large pair of dark eyes. The enamelled spider glistens like a piece of jewelry in a shrub. (This photo doesn’t do it justice.) It is a common Australian spider in the orb-weaver family. The St. Andrew’s cross spider makes a cool cross-shaped pattern in its web. Females have a beautiful banded abdomen.
The wolf spider carries her spiderlings on her back. I captured this one on my garden path. When they’re startled, the spiderlings will scatter off their mom’s back in all directions. I’ve seen this a few times now. It is a creepy but thrilling sight.
My favorite spider always gives me a jump scare! Meet the huntsman. This long-legged giant – the clock spider of viral Internet fame – always causes me to let out a combination of scream and laugh. These impressive arachnids are not dangerous to humans.
More than once, I’ve had a huntsman appear from the heating vent in my car and scuttle across the dashboard. Or worse, the steering wheel in my hand! I’ve encountered huntsman spiders hunting in the hallway at night and accidentally brushed limbs with them on many occasions. These spiders are true Aussie legends.
Why I appreciate my spiders
It takes time to connect with some parts of nature. Things that may seem scary are not always that bad once you learn more about them. This is how I feel about my spiders. Mostly, they are busy minding their own business.
I like my home and clearly many different spiders do, too. That’s okay with me. They keep me curious and entertained.
Also, I know spiders are important and have a job to do. My veggie patch spiders reduce pests like aphids. My huntsman friend eats cockroaches and other household insects. It turns out they make pretty good housemates.
Tell us about your spiders
We’d love to know what you think about spiders.
Which spiders do you share your home and yard with? Which spider is your local legend? Send us your stories, photos, and drawings about spiders. Tell us what type of spiders you found and what you learned about them. Parents or guardians can contact the editors at kids [at] mongabay.com or via the information in our About Us page.
To help you ID spiders, you can try Seek by iNaturalist. Or, a grown-up can help you set up and use iNaturalist.
This post was written in celebration of Save a Spider Day, March 14. All photographs by Megan Strauss.
