• stupidcasey@lemmy.worldEnglish
    15·
    16 hours ago

    Is the left really cute? It looks like an uncanny abomination with human bate on its head like an angler fish

  • TheTechnician27@lemmy.worldEnglish
    55·
    21 hours ago

    If you really want “beast of Satan” territory (imo, Poltys are just very cryptic):

    • For behavior, I’m going to appeal to the Brazilian wandering spider which is extremely aggressive, likes to hide in human living spaces, is mobile, and is severely venomous (including causing a painful priapism).
    • For prey, going with the Goliath birdeater. I think tarantulas are cute, but this one has the legspan of a fucking dinner plate, weighs up to like a 1/5 of a kilo, has a massive body, has 4 cm fangs, and is large enough to prey on small terrestrial vertebrates.
    • For sheer vibes, going with the giant huntsman spider. It lives in caves in Laos, has a legspan of up to 30 cm like the Goliath birdeater (but proportionally smaller body, amplifying the creepiness), was only discovered in 2001 despite being so huge, and as a huntsman is probably fast as fuck. Unsure about the venom; I’ve never researched it.
    • See also: trapdoor spiders.

    Not putting any of these images here in case anyone’s arachnophobic. Exposure therapy only works if you build yourself up to it, and I don’t want anybody to miss out on a chance to come to appreciate spiders.

    • confusedpuppy@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      17·
      21 hours ago

      I’ve seen a massive huntsman spider in Australia. I was trimming palm fronds with a saw on an extended pole and one palm frond hit the tree trunk on the way down. The huntsman managed to safety land on the tree trunk while the frond fell to the ground.

      That spider was way bigger than my hand and demonically fast. Was super cool to see such a big one.

      It’s nice that they are generally chill around people. I had a much smaller one living in my room’s air conditioning unit. It always came out at night and chilled on the wall while I slept and disappeared during the day.

      I never handled a huntsman but I was never really bothered by them during my time in Australia.

          • MotoAsh@piefed.socialEnglish
            2·
            16 hours ago

            I don’t eat spiders! I’d have to be really hungry to try, too. I’d try crickets and other bugs before spiders for sure.

            I know some cultures eat spiders on the regular, but the creepy factor is too strong for me.

            • kamenlady@lemmy.worldEnglish
              1·
              16 hours ago

              I also don’t eat spiders, for the same reason and also why would i eat a fucking spider?

              I was only being silly.

              I saw a documentary about a town in Thailand, where spiders were pretty much the local cuisine. They said they tasted somewhat like chicken.

              • MotoAsh@piefed.socialEnglish
                1·
                15 hours ago

                I don’t doubt that they could be tasty. There is just a mountain of ‘ick’ to get through first for me. lol

    • panda_abyss@lemmy.caEnglish
      5·
      21 hours ago

      Huntsman venom is paralytic and wouldn’t kill you if bitten. The giant huntsman reportedly will just make you nauseous and leave a painful and swollen bite.

    • new_world_odor@lemmy.worldEnglish
      2·
      13 hours ago

      What a unique looking lil guy, wow! I am terrified of spiders except for the jumpers (fat stubby legs so cute), and apparently this guy! It looks so different from any spider I’ve seen before. Very neat.

      • Evil_Shrubbery@thelemmy.clubEnglish
        5·
        8 hours ago

        Spiders have so many species tho, we won’t even know them all.


        (Except the twigs, and one ant, these are jumping spiders.)

          • Evil_Shrubbery@thelemmy.clubEnglish
            4·
            7 hours ago

            Humans too …
            (Poor bastards have to mimic going to work & enrich shareholder value. Jeff still doesn’t know I’m the one leaving him lil bags of flies as office snacks.)

            Then again, other things mimic spiders too, like this froghopper.

            Or

  • M137@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2·
    12 hours ago

    0.0001% of spiders are cute, and even those only in some photos/videos. The rest make my bones itch and my soul pucker.

  • [object Object]@lemmy.worldEnglish
    31·
    16 hours ago

    The left side should be one of them European house spiders, which look like this, are a couple centimeters in size, and are completely harmless. I might have some in my apartment, at least I see them from time to time. I know they put up a little web in the upper corners of the room, but that doesn’t seem effective.