Halloween and Spiders

Mid-Georgia's pet tarantula

     With Halloween approaching, there's no doubt you've seen decorations with spiders and spider webs.  They have been the stars of many "scary" movies like "Arachnophobia" and "The Giant Spider Invasion."  It's no surprise that we group spiders in with the other symbols of fear like witches, ghosts, and monsters around Halloween.  After all, arachnophobia, or the abnormal fear of spiders, is one of the most common specific phobias.  For many of us, just thinking about a spider on us can make our skin crawl!  In reality, by Halloween, when there's a chill in the air and colorful leaves all over the ground, most spiders have laid their eggs and died.  During fall and winter, a few spiders may still be found hiding in a dark corner of the house or basement, but they are not running rampant like we portray in our "haunted houses."

Interesting facts about spiders:
-they are found on every continent worldwide except for Antarctia
-there are approximately 40,000 species of spiders
-they have 8 legs
-unlike insects, spiders do not have antennae
-they have the most centralized nervous system of all arthropods
-most detect their prey by sensing vibrations and they mostly prey on insects and other spiders
-most have 4 pairs of eyes
-females are usually larger than the males
-they have been around for over 200 million years

     Despite our fears, most spiders only bite humans in self defense.  The effects of a spider bite are usually no worse than a mosquito bite or bee sting.  A few spiders that can produce medically serious bites, such as recluse and widow spiders, are actually shy and bite only when they feel threatened.  Unfortunately, this can happen by accident.

brown recluse spider (photo from Wikipedia)

black widow spider (photo from Wikipedia)

     Spider venoms are being investigated for beneficial uses such as an alternative to conventional pesticides and medical treatment for cardiac arrhythmia, Alzheimer's disease, strokes, and erectile dysfunction.
Spiders are also part of people's diets in other parts of the world and cooked tarantulas are a delicacy in Cambodia.  I'm not so sure I want this to appear on McDonald's menu any time soon!
    Even though the average spider is not something to be fearful of, enjoy the spooky spiders this Halloween and maybe you'll even see a few cute ones.