We encountered a few indoor spiders today, so I thought I’d stage a little beauty contest.
Contestant #1: Pholcus phalangioides, found wandering the laboratories of the University of Minnesota. Hobbies: must be biology, since she was captured working in a biology lab.
Contestant #2: Sitticus fasciger, found hopping around in my house. Hobbies: jumping, obviously.
You are the judges! Who wins your approval?
S. fasciger, though I have to admit that shot of P. phalangioides‘s gorgeous gams probably doesn’t do justice to her face.
How big are they?
S. fasciger,
look at those big dark eyes! And such lovely stripes. The P. phalangioide has nice legs, but seems otherwise plain.
On size (@2)…
Using poopyhead’s descriptions we can make some deductions. For instance, S. fasciger was “found hopping around in my house.” Presuming teh mad perfesser means their house in Morris (and not, e.g., one of the undersea volcano lairs), and that said house is not Tardis-like (i.e., it’s exterior dimensions are an accurate indication of its interior dimensions), we can conclude the spider is unlikely to be any larger than, say, a fully-grown bear or bison. Probably a bit smaller so it can (mostly) fit through the doorways and not knock holes in the ceiling when it jumps. Maybe as small as a Great Dane. Unless, of course, it’s extremely flexible, like a Giant Squid, or is itself Tardis-like (smaller on the outside).
P. phalangioides is harder to size. The physical constraints of a biology lab do suggest it is probably smaller than a Blue Whale, which isn’t a great deal of help as that is the largest animal. However, working in a biology lab does mean it’s been exposed to (if not actually a subject of) teh mad perfesser’s experiments. Therefore, it probably has adjustable size and feeding habits to match.
See? Science is eazy!!1!!!
Sitticus is a rather ironic name for a genus of jumping spiders. It sounds more like a spell used by Hogwarts professors on their unruly students: “Sitticus downus!”
While #1 is quite elegant, I’m most charmed by #2’s lovely fur coat.
Sitticus fasciger.She’s fuzzy, striped, and has dark bright eyes. She looks so intelligent, and DARNED CUTE!
Sitticus
Deuces
Sitticus
#1: Pholcus phalangioides. Far more elegant.
Love the long, slim legs, but will have to go with furry cuteness: Sitticus for the win. Think how it would look with bangs!
Sitticus.
I vote for Sitticus. Lovely lovely little spider.
Sitticus, definitely Sitticus.
There is something alluring about a compact, muscular woman, the kind who looks like she could snap your spine and make you happy for it. But those long, slender legs! Gotta go with Polcus.
I’m gonna go with Sitticus, probably because of the “Baby Yoda” cuteness factor…
OT but just in case of medical emergencies Giant Cockroach Operation Pregnancy. With any luck the medical team can scale down to spider size.
I’ve always loved jumping spiders. I remember as a kid being fascinated by the zebra back spiders crawling around the walls in the garden and couldn’t keep my eyes off them. The best part: They regularly looked back at me with their adorable big little eyes! ❤️
So, yeah: Sitticus fasciger! I choose you!!!!
With love to my old beloved Salticus scenicus…
I really get a kick out of Bears. So the fluffy hairy one wins it for me.
One little surprise: I submit wild-caught spiders to iNaturalist, and that was the first recorded observation of Pholcus phalangioides in Stevens county. I get these kinds of unexpected distinctions all the time, because spider hunters are rare.
PZ @22:
That just means the news is out and they’re closing in…