Re: Dixie Cup Capture!!!

From: Rand Nicholson (writserv@nbnet.nb.ca)
Date: Sat May 08 1999 - 22:10:16 PDT


Date: Sun, 9 May 1999 10:10:16 +0500
From: Rand Nicholson <writserv@nbnet.nb.ca>
To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com
Message-Id: <aabcdefg1593$foo@default>
Subject: Re: Dixie Cup Capture!!!

Paul:

>In what's becoming an annual rite of spring, I've captured the first of
>the 1999 spider crop in the house...
(snip)
>finding a frightened Diane still clutching two
>dixie cups as if her life depended on it.
(snip)
>I restunned him and fed him to one of the new
>flytraps (see pix of the plant on my CP page). It was no contest in the
>end. Let the games begin!
>
>Cheers,
>Paul

Then again, you could have put your finger underneath the spider, or got it
to crawl onto your finger (used a bit of paper or a pencil, etc, if you
consider the things monsters), lifted it out of its web, walked it outside
to some of your favourite plants that may be bothered by pests and let it
crawl onto a leaf or stem where it could happily settle down and gobble up
all sorts of plant nasties. Spiders will defend themselves against
aggression (being gooshed), but are our buddies. If you handle them gently,
these _very_ effective predators will cause you no harm and do the job of
toxic chemical sprays for you.

If you are afraid of a bite; just remember; stimulus and response. One
generally has to work at getting a spider to bite them. We are too big for
prey and few North American spiders above the hard frost line can even
raise a welt.

Each year, when I put my sarrs and neps outside, the pitchers are colonized
by various spiders. Other (potted deck) plants are patrolled by little 1/3
inch, incredibly aggressive, jumping wolf spiders that can chew through a
thick colony of aphids in a matter of hours. They spin no webs, but wander
about with a bleak and serious attitude. They are easy to handle, if you
can stay still long enough to get them to walk, or jump, onto your hand,
but you have to be quick to transfer them to your desired plant, because
they get bored fairly eaisly with no prey to hunt and have a tendency to
leap off what they consider to be unproductive areas. Then you have a yo-yo.

As a Canadian, subject to some of the more malicious Skeeters, dreaded
Black Flies and the insidious phantom swarms of No-See-Ums, I smile every
time I see a spider web and give a blessing.

I suspect that your VFTs would have been better served by the spider living
amongst them, instead of fed to them, especially during aphid season when
the winged females fly.

Kind Regards,

Rand

Rand Nicholson <writserv@nbnet.nb.ca>
Maritime New Brunswick, Canada



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