Big Honkin’ Spider!

[greyhounder]

Okay — not really cache related (unless there is a cache in the pile of laundry on my basement floor) but I thought some of you folks would help me identify this spider.

I am not afraid of spiders. They are a beneficial creature,a nd generally their bite is safe.

But I was loading laundry into the washer last night and a HUGE spider came crawling out. I squashed it, only because I didn’t want something that big biting me or my pets. I must say — the bigger the spider, the easier they are to sqoosh! Unfortunately, I was too freaked out to finish the laundry last night.

It was brown and about the size of a silver dollar coin — maybe bigger. It looked like a tarantula!!!!!! Was that a wolf spider, possibly. I hope it wasn’t a brown recluse!

I’ve never seen a spider in my basement before. I recently had it waterproofed, so now it’s much more dry, which may be why this guy appeared.

So what the heck was it?

Bec

[Cachew]

Can you take a picture of the squashed mess?

I recall a hairy tarantula that found me in a compromised position in the desert a while back(!)

[greyhounder]

I will look to see if the sqish is still there. After I dealt the killing blow, the stick I was using as my weapon caught some part of the arachnid pancake and flipped it away. I couldn’t see where it went, but I will look again. It looked sort of like a smashed date when I got it….

Bec

I’m hesitant to finish my laundry though — I might just have to go buy all new clothing!

[wzbt03]

I believe the appropriate statistic here is that the average person will ingest 8 spiders during their lifetime while sleeping.
Oh by the way – sweet dreams .

[Mama Fishcacher]

Usually if someone is saying “it looks like a tarantula”, it’s probably a wolf spider. So named because it actually hunts its prey instead of spinning a web and waiting.

For the most part, we are too far north for the brown recluse’s normal range. That’s not to say they don’t exist in Wisconsin at all, just that they are very rare here.

You did better than I would’ve. I don’t get along with great big bugs very well. I have the heebie jeebies just thinking about your big spider. A daddy longlegs, I’m ok. A big garden spider – fine! It stays outside! But those giant hairy spiders…. Ewwww!!!!!!!!! And Eeeeek!!!!!!

~Mama Fishcacher

[Ms. WISearcher]

I would agree that from your description that it sounds like a Wolf Spider. Not harmful, actually quite friendly…but if you ever want to come and play with a real tarantula…let me know. Charlotte, a school pet, would love to have you play with her…or maybe she would play with you…but we will be sure to keep her away from your laundry…sounds like there are spider weapons of mass destruction there…

[Cheesehead Dave]

Of course, where there’s one, there’s sure to be hundreds more…

[greyhounder]

And now I feel bad that I squished him (or her). I initially thought it was a wolf spider, but wasn’t sure if they were biters or not. Something that big would have hurt. But now I wish I would have caught him (or her) and released it back into the wild (as I generally do with spiders.)

A bit of Becky trivia:
I encountered some wolf spiders many years ago while vacationing with my family to the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee (I think it was in 1985 or 1986). We went on a nighttime nature hike with the park ranger and then looked for wolf spiders. You brought a flashlight, turned it on and put it on the top of your head (like a headlamp) and scanned the grass. The wolf spider eyes would glow out at you. It was pretty cool!

This is the same vacation where I had a very close encounter with a skunk and a nearly close encounter with a black bear! I am the BEAST MASTER!!

Rest in Peace, Big, honkin’ wolf spider…..

[Author]

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