The fuck was in my shower this morning? D:

minirhyder

I washed it down the drain.
Will its family come after me and kill me?
I live in NYC.

Noisymunk

Looks like a grass spider/funnel web spider. They tend to head for warmth when the weather starts to change.

DemonStacey

It... it has a skull on it's butt. It's most certainly going to crawl out of your drain and kill you in your sleep.

Newtron

Looks like an orb weaver of some kind.

IANAS(piderologist).

Officer 1BDI

It kind of looks like a brown widow spider, but IANAentomologist and unless it had a red hourglass on its abdomen I'm likely wrong.

Darkewolfe

I don't want to say it's an alien...

but...

http://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/commonspiders.pdf

Melinoe

If you just washed the spider down with water it might come back, spiders are pretty resilient to water, but if you showered right after the soap probably killed it because soap and stuff murders the hell out of them. Windex works too, squirt em with it and they die pretty much immediately.

Also oh god I wish I hadn't clicked this ;-;

minirhyder

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

supabeast

Leave the spiders alone! This is NYC, we need the spiders to kill the roaches. Have you SEEN how big the roaches get?

minirhyder

I have seen the roaches. And the waterbugs. And the flying roaches.

However.

When I see a spider with long bendy legs and a motherfucking skull on its ass, I feel a bit uneasy.

Malkor

The one thing I'll say is that having a spider is all well and good, but you don't want them to lay eggs and have mini-skulls all up in your house. I don't think they reproduce in the winter, but all the info is on how spiders reproduce and not when. Maybe someone here can shed some light?

Skull2185

Yeah... that was Arachnus, Lord of all Spiders. I'm guessing your unprovoked act of agression has angered him.

Basically you're eff'd in the A. You should probably move. Siberia is mostly safe from the wrath of Arachnus... mostly.


For real though... pour some boiling water down the drain to be sure

minirhyder

Well I do like snow

SmokeStacks

Spiders are resistant to water, but after riding a shower's worth of water that dude would be so far down your drain he's in the sewer by now.

The real question is, how did he get into your bathroom in the first place? Did he come in through a cracked window, mosey through your apartment, and manage to find a spot in the shower? Seems a little far fetched. My theory? He crawled on to you while you were outside and rode you into the bathroom. Yeah, you probably carried him in. In fact, you might be carrying a spider right now.

Darkewolfe wrote: »

I don't want to say it's an alien...

but...

http://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/commonspiders.pdf

Oh hey that looks interes

Wolf Spiders wrote:

When you go out at night, look at the ground in front of you with a flashlight held next to your head at the same level as your eyes. You can see many silvery blue-green spots reflecting back at you from the eyes of numerous wolf spiders in the grass.

That sounds fucking terrifying.

L Ron Howard

Be glad you're not in Australia, where spiders regularly are the size of your hand, if not head or more.
There are pics on the web, if you feel so adventurous, of spiders eating birds.

azith28

Malkor wrote: »

The one thing I'll say is that having a spider is all well and good, but you don't want them to lay eggs and have mini-skulls all up in your house. I don't think they reproduce in the winter, but all the info is on how spiders reproduce and not when. Maybe someone here can shed some light?

Don't worry, you will never find the eggs. Because they are in your ear canal.

Thanatos

minirhyder wrote: »

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

I know everybody is joking, but just FYI: there are two spiders that present a threat to humans commonly found in the U.S., the black widow and the brown recluse. Neither of them are native to New York, and the closest any are commonly found near New York is the brown recluse population in southwestern Ohio.

It is possible, but highly unlikely you'd find either in NYC. That's almost certainly some form of harmless house or garden spider.

see317

Thanatos wrote: »

minirhyder wrote: »

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

I know everybody is joking, but just FYI: there are two spiders that present a threat to humans commonly found in the U.S., the black widow and the brown recluse. Neither of them are native to New York, and the closest any are commonly found near New York is the brown recluse population in southwestern Ohio.

It is possible, but highly unlikely you'd find either in NYC. That's almost certainly some form of harmless house or garden spider.

Of course, that's not to say there isn't the possibility of a heretofore unknown and highly deadly species of spider living under your place Mini.
Sure, it's unlikely, but it's not impossible.

Darkewolfe

see317 wrote: »

Thanatos wrote: »

minirhyder wrote: »

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

I know everybody is joking, but just FYI: there are two spiders that present a threat to humans commonly found in the U.S., the black widow and the brown recluse. Neither of them are native to New York, and the closest any are commonly found near New York is the brown recluse population in southwestern Ohio.

It is possible, but highly unlikely you'd find either in NYC. That's almost certainly some form of harmless house or garden spider.

Of course, that's not to say there isn't the possibility of a heretofore unknown and highly deadly species of spider living under your place Mini.
Sure, it's unlikely, but it's not impossible.

We continue to ignore the possibility of Martian spidermen, sent here in retaliation for our drone strikes on Mars.

Bowen

Looks like a typical common house spider. @Arch would know though, I bet.

Usagi

Or @Bugboy

BugBoy

ooh, that's a very attractive spider

I'm not well versed enough in them to do a species ID (yet, I'm hoping to learn), but it's not surprising to see them inside this time of year

spiders move inside to escape the cold, so you might find more

probably harmless

MetroidZoid

No one's gonna make a Zelda joke?

No one?

Well I never.

Druhim

Thanatos wrote: »

minirhyder wrote: »

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

I know everybody is joking, but just FYI: there are two spiders that present a threat to humans commonly found in the U.S., the black widow and the brown recluse. Neither of them are native to New York, and the closest any are commonly found near New York is the brown recluse population in southwestern Ohio.

It is possible, but highly unlikely you'd find either in NYC. That's almost certainly some form of harmless house or garden spider.

Yup. Most of the responses in here are just arachnophobic fear mongering and little fact. It's almost certainly harmless.

BugBoy

hm

did a search for a new york spider guide, happened to stumble across a picture of a very similar spider

potentially en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steatoda_grossa

e:did a little looking, and I'm pretty sure you've got a male false black widow

Malkor

BugBoy wrote: »

hm

did a search for a new york spider guide, happened to stumble across a picture of a very similar spider

potentially en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steatoda_grossa

when do they multiply

Rend

I am pretty sure that is a common household needle spider. You can tell because the legs get very thin on the end? Each of those actually have a small venom sack, and each one is capable of delivering a different type of venom. One is paralytic, one is psychoactive, etc.

Needle Spiders are actually the root cause of more deaths each year than car crashes. But hopefully you're okay.

Noisymunk

Next time, get a cup and tear off a piece of cardboard from a cereal box or fold up a piece of paper. Put the cup over the spider, put the paper under the cup and take it outside.

Noisymunk

Rend wrote: »

I am pretty sure that is a common household needle spider. You can tell because the legs get very thin on the end? Each of those actually have a small venom sack, and each one is capable of delivering a different type of venom. One is paralytic, one is psychoactive, etc.

Needle Spiders are actually the root cause of more deaths each year than car crashes. But hopefully you're okay.

If you want to write fiction, go to the Writer's Block.

minirhyder

Noisymunk wrote: »

Next time, get a cup and tear off a piece of cardboard from a cereal box or fold up a piece of paper. Put the cup over the spider, put the paper under the cup and take it outside.

I live in a building though. In the middle of the city. So where would I put him? Just the sidewalk?

TPSou

just give the cup to someone, ask if they can hold it for you then walk away.

Noisymunk

minirhyder wrote: »

Noisymunk wrote: »

Next time, get a cup and tear off a piece of cardboard from a cereal box or fold up a piece of paper. Put the cup over the spider, put the paper under the cup and take it outside.

I live in a building though. In the middle of the city. So where would I put him? Just the sidewalk?

Yeah, just stick it like on the wall your building. Or if you wanna be a super cool guy take it to the park. On the subway.

Gaslight

Druhim wrote: »

Thanatos wrote: »

minirhyder wrote: »

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

I know everybody is joking, but just FYI: there are two spiders that present a threat to humans commonly found in the U.S., the black widow and the brown recluse. Neither of them are native to New York, and the closest any are commonly found near New York is the brown recluse population in southwestern Ohio.

It is possible, but highly unlikely you'd find either in NYC. That's almost certainly some form of harmless house or garden spider.

Yup. Most of the responses in here are just arachnophobic fear mongering and little fact. It's almost certainly harmless.

Most of the responses in here have been entirely facetious.

minirhyder

All good ideas.
I think I'll combine the two and give the cup to someone on the subway right before I get off.

dlinfiniti

Druhim wrote: »

Thanatos wrote: »

minirhyder wrote: »

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

I know everybody is joking, but just FYI: there are two spiders that present a threat to humans commonly found in the U.S., the black widow and the brown recluse. Neither of them are native to New York, and the closest any are commonly found near New York is the brown recluse population in southwestern Ohio.

It is possible, but highly unlikely you'd find either in NYC. That's almost certainly some form of harmless house or garden spider.

Yup. Most of the responses in here are just arachnophobic fear mongering and little fact. It's almost certainly harmless.

when it comes to spiders there is no such thing as fear mongering
I mean, look at them
harmless things do not look like that

KrubixCube

We are hard wired to be afraid of the things for a reason (and that reason, scientifically of course, is that they rose directly from hell to eat our dreams).

Giggles_Funsworth

Thanatos wrote: »

minirhyder wrote: »

Well I DID shower right after, so phew. Though I was debating not showering

I wish I hadn't gone into the bathroom this morning.

So it seems like it might not be able to kill me? Which is good news I guess.

I know everybody is joking, but just FYI: there are two spiders that present a threat to humans commonly found in the U.S., the black widow and the brown recluse. Neither of them are native to New York, and the closest any are commonly found near New York is the brown recluse population in southwestern Ohio.

It is possible, but highly unlikely you'd find either in NYC. That's almost certainly some form of harmless house or garden spider.

Brown Recluses have a terribly undeserved bad reputation.

http://spiders.ucr.edu/myth.html

In its native range, the brown recluse is a very common house spider. A colleague in Missouri found 5 in a child's bedroom one night, a person in Arkansas found 6 living under his box spring in his bedroom, during a cleanup at the Univ. of Arkansas, 52 were found in a science lab that was being used everyday, a colleague found 9 living under one piece of plywood in Oklahoma, a grad student and I collected 40 of them in a Missouri barn in 75 minutes, and would have collected more, but we ran out of vials to house them. One amazing story is an 8th grade teacher in Oklahoma checking up on his students avidly collecting material by some loose bricks around a flagpole on an insect collecting trip. In about 7 minutes, 8 students collected 60 brown recluses, picking them all up with their fingers and not one kid suffered a bite. An even more amazing story is that of a woman in Lenexa, Kansas who collected 2,055 brown recluse spiders in 6 months in 1850s-built home.  This family of 4 has been living there 8 years now and still not one evident bite.  (see Vetter and Barger 2002, Journal of Medical Entomology 39: 948-951). When you find brown recluses in an adequate environment, you do not find one, you find dozens. And yet, the people who live with these spiders rarely get bitten nor do they run around in constant fear. With the current paranoia, if we had populations like that in California, they would evacuate the state and close it down. The California reaction to the mythical brown recluse is based solely on the fear of the unknown and the willingness to believe that there is an 8-legged menace running around causing havoc. I was interviewed by a local newspaper reporter looking for a sensationalistic sound bite. The question was, "What do you think the effect of this brown recluse event will have on southern California?" My answer was "All the tourists from Missouri, Arkansas and Kansas are laughing themselves off their hotel beds because a story on one alleged brown recluse spider found in Los Angeles makes the evening news."

Their venom is necrotic but they are pretty damn non-aggressive.

The Hobo Spider however, is occasionally known to be an over aggressive asshole, has a necrotic bite that's everything you've heard about the Recluse's, and lives in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho.

http://www.hobospider.com/info/index.html

Sweet dreams @Thanatos

Darkewolfe

You can say that the Brown Recluse is not aggressive, but in the south everyone knows several people who've been bitten, and probably at least one person who has scars from it. It IS a dangerous spider, it's just that your chances of being bitten by any given one are low.

Giggles_Funsworth

Darkewolfe wrote: »

You can say that the Brown Recluse is not aggressive, but in the south everyone knows several people who've been bitten, and probably at least one person who has scars from it. It IS a dangerous spider, it's just that your chances of being bitten by any given one are low.

True, I was just pointing out that the effects of it's bite and the likelihood of being bitten aren't nearly the nightmare fuel the news has presented, whereas the Hobo Spider is a legitimate asshole.

Bowen

Chances of being bitten being low doesn't calm nerves when the brown recluse is pretty much everywhere in the midwest. Instead of your typical house spider it's probably a recluse.

Giggles_Funsworth

bowen wrote: »

Chances of being bitten being low doesn't calm nerves when the brown recluse is pretty much everywhere in the midwest. Instead of your typical house spider it's probably a recluse.

Pardon my lack of sympathy as someone who grew up with Black Widows and Rattlesnakes everywhere.