Beady Little Eyes

We were out with friends at Hog’s Back Falls . . .

. . . when I saw this little guy near the locks.

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I got as close as I dared with my camera, but he never moved. If he had, I’d likely be nursing something broken in my own fall. I believe there would have been some tripping over my own feet as I moved to get out of the way.

Maybe he didn’t see me; maybe he didn’t care.

I kinda wish I hadn’t seen them. The beady little eyes, I mean. They make the creepiest of creatures a tad less creepy.

 

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16 Responses to Beady Little Eyes

  1. Tom Watson says:

    Is that one of those Joro spiders that have invaded Georgia?
    If so, they’re actually not harmful. Don’t know, though, if I’d fancy one as a pet.
    Tom

    • Isabel Gibson says:

      Tom – They’re awfully big to not be harmful, if you see what I mean. I’d hate to think we were being invaded by any more types of spiders.

  2. Could this “little guy” be called “the big guy” in a different context? I’m having some trouble discerning “the beady little eyes” among the colours and textures. The size of the gravel in the cement isn’t a clear marker of the spider’s size. He could be disturbingly large or horrifyingly huge. My instinct either way is to surrender the bridge and the field to him.

    • Isabel Gibson says:

      Laurna – You’ll be glad to know I realized that scale problem in situ and considered placing a 25-cent piece adjacent, for context. You won’t be surprised that I did nothing of the sort. My memory may not be entirely accurate in this regard, but I’d guess the two-sac body was bout about 3 cm long. Large enough to be disturbing, for sure. As for the eyes, you have to enlarge the photo I think, and I will entirely understand if you do nothing of the sort.

  3. Being brave enough to enlarge this critter magnified on my computer screen, he grew from 3 cm, as first viewed, to 9 cm in the maximum magnification, which gave me a glimpse of those eyes. Seeing him “size as” allows me to realize him as about 4 inches (10 cm) in leg-span diameter. I entirely understand that fleeting notion about the quarter! He is as big, if not as furry, as some of the tarantulas we often saw in Arkansas.

    • Isabel Gibson says:

      Laurna – Brave, indeed. I know there are people who are not bothered by spiders, but I am not among them. I suppose there are nasty spiders in Arizona – I know there are scorpions. So far, no shows.

  4. barbara carlson says:

    Here’s the thing about creepy crawlies — if they see you or feel the vibration of your feet, they will stop “dead” in their tracks and wait — exactly 42 seconds. I have timed lots, well, not lots, but enough. If you took longer than that photo-ing, he might have been watching you… 3 cm body? Run far, run fast.

    When I was picking up objects to scan for my digital graphics, people donated all kinds of things. A woman brought me a big tarantula in a glass jar of formaldehyde. She had found it (dead) on a sidewalk just east of St. Laurent Road.

    I still have it. Didn’t scan it and I didn’t want Formaldehyde getting into my scanner.

  5. Looks like a dock spider. They do get rather large.

    They also make large woven nests for their eggs.

    Guess you haven’t been blessed with one at White Lake?

    • Isabel Gibson says:

      Jim R – Blessed? As in,”Bless me!!!” No, not yet. I’ll remember to stay off the dock. Thanks for the safety tip.

  6. John Whitman says:

    Isabel – at first I thought it was a tarantula. Once I knew its size it became only a spider.

    • Isabel Gibson says:

      John – Whew! A tarantula hadn’t occurred to me, although I guess it should have, given Barbara’s comment. And I take your point (or think I do) – it wasn’t dangerous to me.

  7. John Whitman says:

    Isabel – actually, most tarantulas aren’t poisonous or dangerous and some are kept as pets. Barbara’s tarantula was probably a pet before it ended up on St. Laurent Road.
    Tarantulas are much like pit bull dogs, they just look scary.

    Another strange fact; the “hair” on tarantulas was once clipped in poorer countries and then sold in small vials in joke shops as itching powder.

    • Isabel Gibson says:

      John – Hahaha – shearing spiders, eh? I swear, there is nothing that hasn’t been tried, especially by people trying to survive.

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