Spiders from who knows where

spider in the mailbox

When I checked the snail mail today, I found a few snails but also this little red dude. I don’t know what species he/she is, but that’s some impressive striping. I spent a good 15 minutes trying to get a good photo, before realising I didn’t have a memory card in the camera. But I really wanted the shot so I went back and did it all again. Discovered the difference between the different metering modes while I was at it πŸ™‚

Anyone know what kind of spider I have here?

Update: The spider-in-my-mailbox saga continues

~ by goat_admin on January 23, 2007.

14 Responses to “Spiders from who knows where”

  1. I have a spider chart hanging next to the computer (!), and I can’t see anything similar(though the chart is drawings, not photos, it’s not a very good one!). The shape looks most similar to to a Redback, but obviously normally redbacks don’t have yellow…. Actually, even the red stripe looks like the red stripe of a redback. So it’s just the yellow that is odd…

  2. I’m a little disturbed by your spider chart Simone, but thanks for the info! Little dude did look a lot like a redback, apart from the colouring… the yellow is probably due to the bad light inside the box, the bits on his/her back are actually white…

  3. AHhgggghghGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHH!

  4. /me wonders if Australia Post will send a spider that is securely packaged to somewhere on St Georges Tce

  5. Um, I think a courier would be better for the job

  6. It’s a variety of garden orb weaving spider – have a look at a few pics:

    http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=orb+weaving+spider&btnG=Search+Images

    Like what Google has done with the images search – image specs hidden, revealed on rollover. Nice and clean!

  7. Cool, I think Nathanael is right – here’s a fact sheet:
    http://www.amonline.net.au/factsheets/orb_weaving_spiders.htm

    Apparently they are “reluctant to bite” and not terribly poisonous.

    I dunno what he’s doing in our letterbox though.

  8. yes that is what it is – a redback is completely black – just watched Charlotte’s web at Burswood last weekend so spiders are currently ‘in’ in our household!

  9. Sorry guys, it’s not a Garden Orb Weaving Spider.

    The spider is in fact a Red back spider, juvenile, female, and has just moulted. (Thanks to the Pest and Disease Information Service @ Dept. of Agric for a quick answer).

    Kay, probably a good idea to get a heavy dose of bug spray on that before a letter gets sent to you.

  10. Spiders are currently ‘in’ in our house too – must be the bad weather last week; killed a dozen white tails over a couple of days … ugh

  11. Good one Mattman… now I have to get rid of her, redbacks near the house are not good πŸ™

  12. generally redbacks will not bite unless provoked, I guess sticking you hand into get the snail mail out can be considered as provocation!

    We had a wasps nest in our letter box and the postie left us a note saying that he will throw the mail on the driveway if we don’t clear the letter box.

    I was just telling Mattman yesterday we have spiders and wasps everywhere, we have just learnt to co-habit!

    Before you whack it with bug spray – how about trying a brush and pan and throwing it over the fence into the neighbours property?

  13. Ha, glad that’s sorted out! I did think Orb weaving spider for a minute too, but it’s shape was quite different.
    The spider chart is really Pascal’s, it should be next to his computer, ha ha!

  14. […] the saga of the spider in my mailbox… today I went out to check the mail. OK, I also went out there because I wanted to check on […]

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