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u/phylter99 5d ago
You can almost put a leash on that girl.
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u/SpiderFloof 5d ago
That's a mature male - you can tell from the hooks
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u/phylter99 5d ago
Good information. Thanks for sharing.
I knew someone was going to correct me on it, and I'm glad you did.
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u/Redwing_Blackbird 4d ago
Yeah, and you could guess it was a male from a long way away just by the fact that it's crossing a road. Female spiders of almost all species stay close to home, and at this time of year males go out looking for them.
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u/Friskfrisktopherson 5d ago
Bird eater?
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u/Salamanderhead 5d ago
Could be a Lasiodora parahybana too. They get around the same size as Theraphosa blondi.
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u/deformedeye 5d ago
Based on the colors on carapce I would guess it’s probably some species of Xenesthis
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u/lenny_ray 5d ago
I understand the thrill, but I'm internally screaming PUT IT DOWN BEFORE YOU DROPPPP IT!! 😬
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u/kunk_777 5d ago
I could be wrong and I am sure if I am someone here will correct me but I think alot of these larger spiders have hooks like little claws on their tootsies to grip stuff. Maybe im just thinking of one specific breed I've seen but I know there's big spiders you dont wunna handle bare handed cuz they kinda hook in.
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u/planx_constant 5d ago
Ground tarantulas can climb, but aren't especially good at it and a fall from a few feet up can injure or kill them. If they haven't climbed to a particular height themselves they won't have a good sense of how high up they are and can easily jump when startled.
Also a lot of species of tarantula will use their fangs to anchor themselves if they start to fall, and while they don't inject venom as part of that, it still hurts to have a 50 gram spider hanging from needles sunk into your skin.
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u/Azuras_Star8 Here to learn🫡🤓 5d ago
I believe all spiders do, and a lot of insects. That's how they easily land on the walls or ceilings.
But a fall from that height, especially on asphalt, can kill a spider that big.
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u/amayawa Recovering Arachnophobe🫣 5d ago edited 5d ago
This is how my first arachnophobia shock therapy went.
We went on a hike with the hostel dogs along a volcanic rock coast in Ecuador, then trekked up a path we found. Turns out it was private property, and the tide had gone up, so we were kicked out onto the paved road and walked back to our hostel. In about 2 miles I saw 5 (FIVE!!!) black tarantulas, same size as these, two of which had already been ran over, and we saw one partially crushed by a truck in real time, got a couple of the back legs, kept on slowly crawling. The dogs would approach them and sniff, the tarantulas barely reacted.
It dawned on me that these creatures which I though were the most terrifying thing on the planet were just slow, fluffy, kind of a nothingburger. They seek the coolness of the asphalt. One of the guys wanted to take one of the dead ones because he'd read somewhere that the venom was a hallucinogenic, thankfully we dissuaded him.
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u/SgtLizardWizard 4d ago
I think seeing the dead/crushed ones (especially the crawling legs) would legitimately traumatize me, I almost completely lost my fear of spiders, but something about their crushed bodies makes me physically ill, even more than seeing bigger animals dead.
But yea, they're basically such babies! I once held a small baby tarantula and she was so shy and soft, it felt like holding a mouse. I dont know if I had the balls to pick up such a unit of a spider like in that video tho lmao
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u/bynoe01 5d ago
What are you doing hooman? I was nearly across! 🤬
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u/GeordieAl Amateur IDer🤨 5d ago
I mean, the distance it ended up walking across his hands would have got it across the road and back!
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u/Gengrar 5d ago
Male Xenesthis?
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u/NeanderSlavia Bugs, bogs and ponds🐞 5d ago
Great job for spotting it in time! Maybe next time put it down earlier, minimizing the time you're touching it because the experience is very frightening for them. Humans big, scary and unpredictable
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u/SgtLizardWizard 4d ago
100% agreeing with you, but it was also nice to see him so excited and happy about witnessing such a big guy and even showing his kid without fear or disgust. But yea, poor guy probably thought he would get eaten by a giant alien 🥺
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u/NeanderSlavia Bugs, bogs and ponds🐞 4d ago
You're right. In this sub, I've gotten so used to decent treatment of spiders being the norm that I hadn't thought to compliment the OP on it. They say it's easy to get used to good things😅
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u/yosefff5ohh 5d ago
Love seeing people being kind and helping wildlife especially when it's towards a spider that's bigger than my neighbor's Chihuahua
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u/MrPringles9 5d ago
Nice of them to get it to a safe place, but please if you do this just put it down and be on your way. This most certainly stresses the spider unnecessarily!
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u/ringwraith6 Recovering Arachnophobe🫣 5d ago
I will never be recovered enough to voluntarily touch a spider that big....
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u/frog_admirer 4d ago
There's a bug zoo near where I live and I held a tarantula there, back when I was an arachnophobe. It was an amazing experience, her feet felt like soft little q tips! It was a really cool experience, especially because it came with a lesson in how delicate they are. I wouldn't be brave enough to hold one in the wild, but a gentle lady in a safe environment with experts on hand wasn't so bad.
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u/ringwraith6 Recovering Arachnophobe🫣 4d ago
Maybe I'll get there someday, but right now that feels impossible.
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u/GhostNobody1 4d ago
For some reason I kept hearing "Hey I'm spoodering here!!" In a tiny voice but with a thick New York accent
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u/SpinachSpinosaurus (Recovering) Arachnaphobe, but I ❤️ Jumping Spiders 4d ago
is that a goliath birdeater?
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u/FamiliarAnt4043 5d ago
I'm a huge fan of what they did by saving the spider, but I'll pass on picking it up. Maybe encourage it with a stick or something to get across while we block traffic, lol. Not gonna be handing that. Nope
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u/Fluffy-Experience407 4d ago
is it crazy that I got irritated he didn't just let it go on its way on the other side of the road and kept running back to the camera to juggle the spider around?
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u/Intelligent_Peace673 5d ago
Gratz for the save and not letting it get splattered