Yellow Sac Spider

[kynekh_amagire]

These spiders occasionally show up on "medically significant" lists, perhaps unfairly. It's hard to gather accurate spider envenomation data, for a variety of reasons. Anyway, they're cute and cheerful and yellow. I used to free-handle them and have never been bitten.

Found this one tiptoeing around on my porch.

Comments

[sandelwood]

I took a picture of an interloper in a snake habitat at the zoo the other day. I should show you. Some kind of almost white/transparent orb weaver, about the size of a quarter. I found them interesting roommates.

[sandelwood]

Here we are.

[kynekh_amagire]

Was it sitting on an orb? The side-view looks like a tangly web, in which case it's (probably*) a long-bodied cellar spider, Pholcus phalangioides. If it was in the middle of an orb that the picture doesn't show, the only widespread orb-weaver I know of with that body shape are some of the Tetragnatha species, maybe versicolor or something similar.

Not that you asked, but hey, I know these things. Also: going to zoos and taking pictures of spiders, d'aww. This zebra jumper was on the informative sign for the Oakland Zoo's otter exhibit.

[sandelwood]

Hmm, it might have been tangly.

I take pics of everything at the zoo. They have a lot of incredible gardens too, considering the climate and short growing season here.

Also gah, the Serval pair were being absolutely wonderful to me, right up on the glass for close ups. The glass, however, was at the wrong angle to the sun. I was so sad. Same for the otters. They were doing their usual backflips into the water where I could get gorgeous partials underwater and out, but the reflections were awful. Not a very good photo haul.

[tailypo]

You weren't asking me but... is it some kind of spiny orb weaver? Guessing... a Spined Micrathena?

[kynekh_amagire]

Just to corroborate, since tailypo got here first: yep, looks like a spined micrathena to me, too! They're pretty.

Glad you like the spiderpix. Heh, sometimes I worry about terrorizing people.

[tailypo]

Yellow sac spider bites HURT when they bite you, even if they don't cause medical problems. Ouch. It was in a pants leg and got me on the calf, and I shook it out. It felt like a bee sting. x_x I didn't swell up and hurt for days like I do from bees though.

As such, I don't touch them with my bare hands, I use a strictly jar-and-cardstock liberation strategy. XD They probably wouldn't bother if I was just handling gently rather than threatening squishing via clothing, but I don't want to risk it. Heh.

[kynekh_amagire]

Yeah, I don't think they're particularly dangerous, and I free-handled them without getting bitten for years before the rumor that they could inflict necrotic bites started going around. I tend to side with the "probably harmless" estimation in most cases, since cultural arachnophobia tends to blow every potentially spider-related thing out of proportion: the "minor skin lesion turns into seeping festering wound, victim doesn't remember how he got it, doctor says it might have been a spider bite, blames whatever species has been featured on the news most recently even if it isn't found in local area, cue widespread panic and misinformation" sequence is disturbingly common.

Then again, you never know. Even with spiders generally considered harmless, individual reactions can vary. I'm reactive to pholcid (daddy long legs - the one that's a spider, not the one that's a harvestman) venom: I get horrific welts and feel nauseous for a couple of days if one bites me.