Mr. Tarantula and the Spider Woman

  

 Although last week was not the first time we saw a tarantula here, it was the most recent; and we'd been concerned about why not; writing about it led to some research. I knew the basics, but these are interesting spiders with multiple varieties and some behavior patterns I had not known.   The recent pictures are below as I know some people are afraid of spiders and instead I have photos of Spider Woman on top. Why she is 'Spider Woman' is in the story.

What I learned is that female tarantulas can live up to 30 years but the males usually just 10. The males right now are on the hunt for a mate and in some states like New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma, they can seem to be in massive numbers as they cross roads.

The tarantula photographed below is likely a male due to it being black. We don't think it is the Desert Tarantula as it would be brown. Instead it looked like the Tucson Bronze Tarantula, which the article said mostly is found in New Mexico. Males are black and females brown or tan. It's known to be gentle and often the one made into a pet. No thanks for me, but I like seeing them outside. There are ten species of tarantulas in the United States.

The hair on their bodies actually can be weapons if they are being attacked as they evidently throw them like a spear. There are spiders that are dangerous to humans, but they are not the tarantulas in this country. We decide something is evil often by how it appears. That's not always a good way to judge...

The stories below come from when we first bought Casa Espiritu. That was over twenty years ago and Ranch Boss was working at the company where  he'd been for 24 years and then as a consultant for a variety of start up companies. That meant we didn't live here all the time; and sometimes, I lived here alone while he was at the farm or on business trips.

At Casa Espiritu, I had various jobs to do outside. One involved cleaning out the outdoor wildlife pool and then cementing some holes in it. As I did it, I moved the sculpture you saw above. (At that time, I did sculptures of all sizes, she is one of the largest. I had to shape her in two pieces; so she could be fired in our kiln. Her clay is 'high-fire' for outdoor works. She came with us to Tucson). 

When I moved her, an angry tarantula scurried out from underneath as it had been his or her home. I quickly restored the sculpture where it had been and apologized. That's when the sculpture got its name, very apropos for Native American mythology-- Spider Woman. I don't know if the tarantula ever returned but she was used by other small critters over the years, one of whom gnawed the hole you now see in the photo.

My second adventure with a tarantula came out by our swimming pool where I was watering the plants. I saw a tarantula being chased by a Tarantula Hawk. Knowing these large wasps kill tarantulas, I turned my hose into a spray and let the wasp have a big dose, allowing the spider to at least escape that time.

I knew that the way the wasps killed them seemed brutal to me. They  inject a poison into the tarantula that paralyzes it legs and pincers, then it would drag its body to its burrow where it'd lay its egg in it. When the baby hatched, it would eat the still living tarantula... I know everything has to live but ugh. I did give a scant concern to it turning on me, but that's why I hit it long and hard. I've read they hurt when they sting humans, but they don't paralyze or kill us.

Our most recent sighting of a tarantula was outside my window when Ranch Boss saw it, staring in. He got the camera and took some photos. I suppose it was out looking for a mate. Although it didn't seem to mind being photographed, it also didn't hang around. Mostly they live underground except when looking for prey or a mate.

Here is a link to more info on them if you are not spider avoiders.  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-13781945/Thousands-male-tarantulas-three-states-mate-female.html