Saturday, May 22, 2010

Saturday encore ~ Just when I thought it was safe to go out on the porch

When I moved to New Mexico in 1993, the population was around 1.6 million. Since then, a few others have caught on that this is a pretty cool place to live, and now the population is over 2 million! Katy, bar the door! To stem the tide and provide a balanced view of this place I now call home, I'm repeating this post from September 2008.

It was a typical Friday afternoon. I was focusing on my computer screen, minding my own business, finishing up the day's work. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something move on the porch. It was big. It was ugly. It was...


a tarantula...a brown tarantula...a female tarantula.

At least rattlesnakes make noise and tell you they're out and about. Not these gals...they're the silent enemy. I fully understand that they were here first and I am in their territory. But for cryin' out loud, stay the heck off my porch! This is where my dog sleeps! This is where my pig eats! This is where I walk barefoot!

I went back into the house to get my camera. What a surprise. I looked around for something to place next to the tarantula, to give you a sense of scale. My checkbook? My coffee cup? My ruler!

I cracked open the office door. The tarantula was lying in wait. I tossed the ruler in her direction, and she obligingly walked right on top of it.



That leg span looks about 3.5" to me.

I reviewed my options. Get a broom and sweep it off the porch, sparing its life and allowing it to live for 25 -40 years, giving birth to 500 -1000 more tarantulas every stinkin' year, who might one day walk across my porch, scaring me half to death. That's 12,500 - 40,000 tarantulas from her alone, not counting the offspring of her offspring...


...or sweep it off the porch, then throw a great big rock on top of it.

22 comments:

  1. I remember that post, and, again, it makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck!

    Reading of the possibilities of her longevity and reproduction, I think I would have gone for that great big rock!

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  2. My vote is the rock. If it makes you feel guilty, say a few words over him. I don't know much about tarantulas so I google them. Said they can get as big as a dinner plate. Now that would be a horror show on your porch.

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  3. Ew. I'm wondering is I should send this link to my friends who are recent emigree's to your land. Nah.

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  4. Ewww...definitely NOT a spider fan. I'm glad she was on your porch and not mine.

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  5. well that just did it for me....I will NEVER EVER move to New Mexico.

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  6. That gave me the eeebie jeeeebies! We see one every once in awhile here. Nope, don't like them on the monitor or in person!

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  7. I'd vote for the rock too. If anyone complains about the balance of nature they've obviously never had to deal with freakin' giant spiders in/around their house.

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  8. As a someday resident of right down the road from you I won't soon forget this post, uggg!!
    I hope you chose the rock. I will be collecting as much information about the local inhabitants as I can, I am sure those guys at the hardware store in Mountainair will be happy to try and scare me off with some info.Thanks for the re-post I needed to see that.

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  9. I don't know. As horrendous as these guys look, I remember them (from So. Calif.) as being pretty benign. Certainly not the venomous creatures rattlesnakes and scorpions are. I'd be more inclined to live and let live.

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  10. Shudder, shudder, shudder. Normal spiders don't scare me but once you add hair it changes the situation. I hope you used the rock. I had to kill one of those in my bathroom once when I lived in Southeast Texas (don't think we have those here in N. TX or at least that's what I tell myself). The only think I had handy was hairspray. So I hairsprayed it to death.

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  11. Spiders really don't deserve all the hating they get. Tarantulas are very interesting, and yes, I would not want to wake up next to one. Orb-weavers are very interesting (Remember your Charlotte's Web story?) and often have people reacting with the same horror when they are perfectly harmless. Here's my spider story from last late fall here in the Sandia Mountains: http://theuniversesmiles.blogspot.com/search/label/Cat-faced%20Spider

    These creatures of our natural environment, like the birds and coyotes, enrich our lives.

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  12. After a Spring Break trip to New Mexico 2 years ago, I certainly understand and long for the magic of your home...but tarantulas are not magical. Yikes! What do you do to make sure they don't get inside your house? And how the heck do you keep your animals safe??

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  13. A rock would not have been enough for me. After making sure all the animals were safe, I would have been looking for the shotgun. I am not fond of spiders and the bullsnake would have been long gone to his maker. ICK!! We have tarantulas and scorpions in Southern Colorado. I will continue to live in the north. Thank you very much. LOL

    You are a brave woman, Linda.

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  14. I vote for the rock too, but it appears it could be messy! LOL we have some big spiders here, (not as big as this), and they make a mess when smashed! LOL

    PLEASE TELL..........What DID YOU DO?

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  15. That may work for some folks, but it sure wouldn't keep me from moving to such a beautiful location given the opportunity! I can sympathize though, WA state didn't have near the people it has now when I moved here in the late 70's....even with the rumor that all we have is rain....

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  16. I'll take all that you find. I love spiders, they eat so many insects that are much more dangerous and problematic. We just don't have tarantulas here in NC...sigh

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  17. Can you do me a favour? Next time you are going to have pics of spiders in your blog, give a little warning in the title so I can prepare myself? Thanks. I am currently ridding myself of chronic Arachnophobia and that sucker was just a little too much. Haha. The ironic thing is I love any other bugs you care to name, but spiders are still a challenge.

    Last night I did find a modest sized chap in my bedroom and managed to sleep despite knowing it was there, which is a big improvement for me :). Caught him this morning and mum put him back out in the garden where he belongs.

    Much as they give me 'the willies' I could never bring myself to harm a spider (literally cannot harm a fly either, I have become a top class fly wrangler with the patience and stealth of a Ninja! haha). I know there are some very nasty varieties of spider over there, though I gather tarantulas are not given to bite or shoot their irritant hairs off unless provoked. I do feel sorry for animals like spiders, snakes and rats because they just do what they have to do to survive, they aren't out to deliberately intimidate or hurt us like humans sometimes do.

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  18. I will have to agree with the minority and say oh no! Not the rock! They are not poisonous to humans unless you are allergic like with bees and they eat other pesky bugs. My husband had one as a pet actually and he tells of it actually coming toward the wall of his cage to greet him everyday. They are freaky looking but....what an amazing creature it is.

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  19. When in Belize this past February, I watched the female manager of Pook's Hill Lodge (aka "Cat") pluck a tarantula off the door jamb of a frightened visitor. (not me). Cat's concern was more for the timid tarantula than for us, and she released her into the brush, much to everyone's relief (especially the tarantula).

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  20. I dont know if I could handle 4 inch spiders on my porch!!!!
    I will stay here in Western Washington where we dont have big spiders or rattlers!!!( we do get scorpions, though, I have never found one.

    I would have opted for the rock, mean I know.

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  21. I found one with my bare toe in a slipper. It didn't even try to bite. It curled up and tried to play dead. Pretty darn polite, if you ask me.

    I put it outside and asked it to eat a few scorpions.

    But we all have our demons.

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  22. You know, I hear they're good fried.

    (P.S. Are you trying to freak me out...?)

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