Any Bug Buffs (STX)

see if it looks like any in these pictures

http://research.amnh.org/entomology/blackrock2/pictures/spider_images/galleries/morpho-gallery.htm

All spiders are venomous. Don't worry though its not a centipede

Oh, we have centipedes too. I'm used to them, pretty much. I've never been bitten by a centipede yet.

TropicRose,
Have you been following the other thread about centipedes? They are not the kind of thing you get used to. Are you sure you aren't talking about Gongolas or something else?

The spider sounds like it might be a ground spider. They're a type of tarantula, but not as dangerous. They'll just scare the beejeezus out of you. They come out when we have a lot of rain.

One of the biggest negative points for me living in STX was the bugs. I came home from work late at night a couple of times to find a 6" centipede waiting for me on the sofa. My sofa was black and so was the centipede, so I almost sat on it! I have a phobia of centipedes and scorpions that I can't seem to get over. I also worried constantly that my dogs might get bitten when I'm not home and have an allergic reaction. That happened to me with a scorpion (on a different island), but luckily I was home and got my dog to the Vet in time.

I just checked the centipede thread. I do know the difference between centipedes and millipedes. 🙂

We don't have the big, fat ones. Just semi-skinny ones that are very fast and shrivel up when you mash 'em. I've killed a six -inchers but nothing bigger. I still maintain I'm pretty used to them. That doesn't mean I don't get my husband or son to kill them if they are in shouting range, just that I know the routine and pretty much what to expect from centipedes.

A kind of tarantula, eh? They don't seem to be hairy at all, though. I'll see if I can find a picture.

ok so i got up this morning and went for coffee,out of the corner of my eye i saw something move out of a cup on the coffee mug rack,i assumed it was a mahagony bird and grabbed a different cup rinsed it well and poured my coffee,lol then i went looking for the bug,so i'm moving stuff around and found it, a spider about the size of a dollar piece,not as big,but bigger than a 50 cent piece very pale off white to light tan in color,this does'nt look like the big brown ones i see all the time, lol this one looked creepier any ideas? it's still in there somewhere

ok you guys are freaking me out!!!! we live in south florida so we are used to big, black, hairy, fast spiders occasionally.....but do you ALWAYS have them in the house? I have done a ton of research before we move down next summer but this is the first I am hearing about centipedes and tarantulas....gross!
so, are these nasty things typically in older homes vs. condos? rainy season vs. dry? dark cluttered corners like closets?
dont get me wrong, I expect to have more bug issues there than we do here, and have become very good at aiming my sandal at them for a perfect hit....but seriously.... tarantulas?

cheryl

We have a very open airy house. The center of the house is an open courtyard and we leave most of the interior doors open all the time. We see large spiders occasionally. Most of the time they are dead when we see them. We have baby iguanas in the house all the time. We had a huge centipede problem until we started having the house sprayed once a month. The centipedes were almost a deal breaker for me. I continue to be terrified of them and if I get up in the night I always put shoes on. Since we started having the house sprayed if we see one inside it is usually dead or dying. I hate to spray pesticides in the house but it is necessary here. I haven't found any kind of natural product that keeps centipedes out of the house. I have heard that chickens eat centipedes and that if you keep some in your yard you will have less centipedes.

Get tereminix or olivers when you get here and you'll be find. They'll spray once a month and if you see any bugs in the house they will usually be dead or dying. Our tereminix guy tells us there are no poisinous spiders on the island but I don't believe that. For the most part I love spiders as they help kill the pest I really hate. Mosquitos! I never kill the spiders I just put them outside.

But to answer your question about bugs being in older homes, etc. Bugs are everywhere and a part of island life. You will be living in a humid tropical enviroment. You will have to deal with bugs. As far as I know there is nothing that kills gongolos, every rainy season I get 'guests".

so any possible answers out there about the kind of spider i saw this morning

I just love these bug threads!

For the most part, it seems that homes closer to the ground have more bugs than do condos, esp. upstairs units. I live in a third floor condo now and I've only had two centipedes reach my floor in the past year, no roaches whatsoever, but of course the ubiquitous ants are everywhere. When I lived in a house, and before that a cottage, all manner of bugs would walk in. (I don't like pesticides and have an indoor cat, so I didn't get the exterminators to spray and relied on my island kitty to catch and kill the centipedes and mahogany birds. She did a great job, too!)

Bugs are a fact of life here and you get used to them. (except the centipedes. I kill every one I see, even the babies!)

hey trw: I don't know if your spider is on this list, but check it out:
http://www.termite.com/spider-identification.html

trw, I've seen the ones you're talking about I think...will keep looking!
islandjoan, that is a great site for IDs. Got to really pay attention to detail to distinguish the very common house ones grom the more dangerous ones...
and betty, we most certainly DO have venemous spider here, such as the brown recluse and possibly the hobo (still working on it), as well as black widows.
I have all of these in my house but would'nt see many of them but for the fact that I'm usually up all night. They are usually more scared of us and are good at keeping mosquitos down.

This is too funny. I'm reading this very thread when all of a sudden, a coworker of mine lets out this shriek heard across the office. First thing that comes to mind is, that there's a spider in her workstation.

Sure enough she starts screaming "Aaahhh!! There's a giant spider in my workstation!! Somebody kill it for me!! Aaaaahhh!!"

So yeah, apparently I work with Little Miss Muffet. 😀