Black widow on a guy's arm

[blacktara]

I guess the guy's arm is "substrate" to the spider, but isnt there a chance it could mistake a hair for a tasty niblet?

Would y'all do this?

[youtube]WBeIq6xGYec[/youtube]

 

[What]

I do occasionally, usually not on purpose but it happens.

Although, I know buthus holds his Latrodectus species and from what I understand he has not been bitten yet.

 

[blacktara]

A black widow spider outside of it's web is in a very vulnerable position. It's looking to get to a safe hide. I'd think that in that sitaution, it would react to any perceived threat by biting first and asking questions later. And who is to say what innocent sudden move or unexpected thing it finds in its path wouldnt be felt by it to be a threat.

 

[charlet_2007]

notice how quick he stopped the video when it started to travel up his arm lol

 

[Pulk]

A black widow spider outside of it's web is in a very vulnerable position. It's looking to get to a safe hide. I'd think that in that sitaution, it would react to any perceived threat by biting first and asking questions later. And who is to say what innocent sudden move or unexpected thing it finds in its path wouldnt be felt by it to be a threat.

It's definitely in a vulnerable/threatened position, but its first response to a threat would still be run away... from what I understand they bite if they -have- to. That's not to say I would handle one on purpose.

 

[P. Novak]

Psh thats nothing Buthus can do that, and he also handles L.reclusa! :worship:

 

[8+)]

Buthus talks about learning how their "minds" work. Notice how she was in the pill bottle and wanted out. He allowed her to escape, and she crawled on his arm. She was in "I need to find a safe new home" mode. She wouldn't have wasted her venom on his arm anymore than she would have on a stick she was crawling over.

As for his hair making her hungry, I think eating was the last thing on her mind, and biting his hair wouldn't cause a reaction anyway.

I think centipedes bite even when they're just crawling on skin, because they get more of their sensory information about there surroundings from their substrate and are more able to distinguish flesh as something abnormal, and therefore are more likely to perceive a hand or arm as a threat.

Still I haven't quit mustered the courage to deliberately handle an adult female like that. I think I'm more scared of the inconvenience a bite would cause more than anything else!

 

[P. Novak]

I think centipedes bite even when they're just crawling on skin, because they get more of their sensory information about there surroundings from their substrate and are more able to distinguish flesh as something abnormal, and therefore are more likely to perceive a hand or arm as a threat.

I can see this true because I read somewhere that the "fangs" of a centipede are actually evolved appendiges/legs? Correct me if I'm wrong on that one.

 

[Selenops]

Yeah, I don't want no inconviences that a bite will give. People have been bitten by widows and not known what precisely had bitten them and ended up experiencing symptons of latrodectism mainly due to the fact they failed to have the bite looked over by a medical professional soon enough.

 

[Selenops]

I can see this true because I read somewhere that the "fangs" of a centipede are actually evolved appendiges/legs? Correct me if I'm wrong on that one.

Yes, I've read that all over, their fangs are actually an evolved pair of legs.

 

[spydrhunter1]

I had a mactans run up my arm today while feeding, wasn't an enjoyable surprise. I turned my arm over and she fell off onto the counter.

 

[buthus]

Oh oh.. my ears are ringin again.

I did too much widow handling at the scabies BBQ. The menavodi I brought actually bit me right on a callus on my finger. No penetration, but it was clearly an assassination attempt!

 

[Ted]

ive held all native venomous spiders.
havent been bit yet.
i havent found any of them to be particularily aggressive.
would rather hold any spider over a wheelbug.

 

[majorvoltage]

Oh oh.. my ears are ringin again.

I did too much widow handling at the scabies BBQ. The menavodi I brought actually bit me right on a callus on my finger. No penetration, but it was clearly an assassination attempt!

What a coincidence. I was bitten by L. menavodi during handling as well but have never had any other incidents.

I'm the guy in the video by the way. I just joined.

Graham

 

[8+)]

I've been waiting to hear of a widow keeper being bitten!

Please post of your experience in the "Bite Reports" forum.

I have to admit I'm a little disappointed to hear that it does happen. Buthus didn't you say that menavodi has a rep as a biter?

 

[cacoseraph]

i hold/play with hesperus. immatures and females without sacs don't really make me nervous. i don't play with females that have eggsacs, though.

also, the longer i have been in the hobby the sillier the whole "X thinks you are the substrate" sounds to me. centipedes and tarantulas both have well developed chemoreceptor suites that WELL inform them that they are not walking on dirt. i am pretty sure their tremble sensors tell them something is wildly different, too. i think more it is the fact that most bugs only want to attack/envenomate something that registers as a threat. it is knowing what is going to register as a threat, and not doing it, that keeps one from being bit, i think.


p.s. hello major. it is cacoseraph from youtube

 

[Selenops]

I had my derring-do one day handling a S. subspinipes letting crawled across both hands over a 15 gallon terrarium but haven't held one since when the pede gave a startling action of excercising it's maxillipeds and nearly gave me a "dry" bite. Appeared like the pede was going to sink those fangs in but didn't and I quickly released the pede back into it's terrarium.

 

[8+)]

also, the longer i have been in the hobby the sillier the whole "X thinks you are the substrate" sounds to me. centipedes and tarantulas both have well developed chemoreceptor suites that WELL inform them that they are not walking on dirt. i am pretty sure their tremble sensors tell them something is wildly different, too. i think more it is the fact that most bugs only want to attack/envenomate something that registers as a threat. it is knowing what is going to register as a threat, and not doing it, that keeps one from being bit, i think.

Wouldn't perceptions of what they're crawling over contribute to their assessment of the level of threat?

My point was that centipedes are usually in more direct contact with their environment. They crawl directly over and through it, and they sense their prey with their antennae and legs, and capture their prey with their legs. It makes sense to me that they would be more easily able to make distinctions about what they are crawling over than a widow.

Widows spend most of their time getting a large portion of their sensory input through their web, so I was thinking it's probable that they are not as adept at making the same kinds of distinctions about what they're crawling over as a centipede can.

Of course a widow coaxed out of it's web, and a centipede coaxed out of hiding, would both tend to be more prone to feel threatened.

 

[Selenops]

Let's not forget the outhouse, widow, person principle. I believe centipedes have that same nature. Sneaky biters!

 

[ilovebugs]

I had a large female l. mactans once that I just "had" to let walk on me. I just let it walk over my hand back to the floor and I snapped some pics I believe. I don't plan to do it again, it was just one of those things that needed to be accomplished.