Comments

  1. craig says

    Looks a bit like the two-inch long spider I felt crawling along my inner thigh inside my sweat pants the other day.

    Kinda freaked me out a little.

  3. Jere says

    Oh I don’t know… I’d rather look at a beautiful galaxy, nebula, or star cluster through a telescope than a disgusting bug through a microscope any day.

  4. says

    Bugs aren’t disgusting. I spent an entire summer counting mosquitoes from traps, and I can tell you there were a lot of amazing insects and such that got into the traps along with them.

  5. Adrian says

    What’s more, being able to vertically straight up in the air
    the spider has conquered gravity.

  6. ABR says

    “Oh I don’t know… I’d rather look at a beautiful galaxy, nebula, or star cluster through a telescope than a disgusting bug through a microscope any day.”

    I appreciate observing astronomical bodies, too — although I don’t think I’ll ever do so using Phil “Skepdude” Plait’s telescope!

    I feel compelled to point out, however, as someone who spends 8+ hours per day every day looking at insects and other invertebrates through a microscope, I have yet to find one I would call disgusting.

    All hail our new arachnid overlords!

  7. says

    Craig [#1] – actually, it probably wasn’t that big. Its silhouette and behavior are very suggestive of it being a jumping spider, like this one (the grid squares are one millimeter, so it is only about a quarter of an inch long).

  10. Jere says

    Okay I’ll admit that what may be gross and icky to me may be fascinating to someone else and that’s okay. My wife for example is grossed out by rodents but I find them cute. My whole point was that while I could spend hours looking through a telescope, I’d just as soon avoid creepy crawlies. It was just a reaction to the “Biology trumps Astronomy again” headline.

  11. says

    Hey! Don’t confuse what the Shuttle does these days with astronomy. The only astronomy mission left is the one next year to service Hubble.

    And laying claim to spiders is a stretch for you, my cephalopodulous friend.

  12. Dustin says

    And laying claim to spiders is a stretch for you, my cephalopodulous friend.

    Not least of all becauce giant spiders come from space and/or exposure to cosmic radiation.

  13. craig says

    Well, tceisele, I wish you could identify the spider that was in my pants. Sucker was bigger than anything I’ve seen around here before. Tried to identify it by looking online, go basically nowhere, though I did figure out it was probably a “she.”

    Kept it in a jar for a couple days trying to figure out how to let it go outside without it freezing. After a while I decided she was pretty beautiful. Long hairy legs, the way it moved etc. looked like a mini-tarantula.

  14. says

    Craig: Did you try using the spider ID pages at BugGuide? It’s really useful for getting at least some idea what kind of spider you have. Also, where are you located? If you are in the general vicinity of Michigan, at a wild guess I’d say there’s a good chance it was a European House Spider, a Wolf Spider, or maybe one of the north american Funnel-Web Weaver Spiders. All harmless, of course. Those are the biggest, fuzziest, most-likely-to-be-wandering-about types of spiders that I know of in the Midwest.

  15. gex says

    We’ve apparently passed a House Resolution “supporting Christianity.”

    How is this not a violation of the separation and establishment clauses of the Constitution? Is it because it is a “resolution” and not a law?

  17. Steve in MI says

    Gex (#15): Very simply, yes. It remains, however, a clear violation of common sense and good taste.

  18. Flamethorn says

    Well, tceisele, I wish you could identify the spider that was in my pants.

    Best pickup line I’ve heard all day.

  22. Sili says

    Phil (#11): “cephalopodulous”?!? It’s a good thing we like you…

    :-)

    Wouldn’t “cephalopendulous” be better?

  23. craig says

    Awww man, wish I’d known about that site 2 days ago before I let her go.

    I’m in NY, but she may have hitched a ride in my stuff from FL.

  24. astrolieber says

    B-L-A-S-P-H-E-M-Y !!!!!!
    The stars ain’t gonna like this. Repent, bug-lovers
    before it is too late.
    :P

  25. rrt says

    Unfortunately, the spider in MY pants was there when I was in them too.

    Didn’t go so well for me. As in “most painful experience in my (admittedly lucky) life.” :/

  28. says

    Looks a bit like the two-inch long spider I felt crawling along my inner thigh inside my sweat pants the other day.

    Kinda freaked me out a little.

    Posted by: craig

    Kinda?!? KINDA!?!

  29. antaresrichard says

    “We’ll, if NASA won’t come to the Tarantula Nebula, the Tarantula Nebula must come to…” ooch ouch, my sense of taste just bit me!

    ant-arse, I mean, antaresrichard

  31. maxi says

    PZ, kindly warn us when you link to a site that shows giant spiders. I don’t think the guys in the lab across the quadrangle heard my shriek of terror!

    Urgh, spiders… *shudder* Craig @13: There is nothing beautiful about long hairy legs, especially when attached to a spider!

  32. mothra says

    Yes Johnny Vector, you are correct. The spider is a salticid, a.k.a. a jumping spider. Even I, Lepidopterist with an additional background in Arachnology can plainly discern this.
    Too bad its not the biggest ph*****g Phidippus ever. In head on view, many species have wonderful metallic green chelicerae (fangs).