For you southern boys

[1Morgan]

The spiders are still worse...found a pic.

[retranger]

you need to enlighten a northern boy. What kind of spider?

[SpitnDrum]

Orb weave spider or Garden spider about 3 to 4 " across at there largest not quite the banana spider above but still a big spider.

[SpitnDrum]

Brown recluse or fiddle back spider and its bite results

[kygobbler]

Hey Morgan, that garden spider is the one I was asking you about earlier on this thread.

Hey Shane, thanks for the pics. Those garden spiders I have around the house I love watching how they get thier web vibrateing when they think they are in danger. Also, about the pics I could have done without that last one.

[Bobbyparks]

Man that photo of the spider bite is gruesome!

It makes sense to me about the Copperhead population in Kentucky

It's the rocky areas around here that they seem to inhabit the most as well

Never saw where someone killed so many at one time though

Impressive photo

I'd rather deal with snakes than spiders....

.came home from hunting during archery season many years ago and was pulling a couple layers of clothes off...threw my pants on the floor and was sitting on the bed when a big A@@ spider comes crawling out from between the 2 layers of pants....


When I was 14 or 15 the guy my older cousin was dating dropped his keys one night and when he reached down to pick em up a Rattlesnake bit him in the thumb.

He had all kinds of problems healing up.....came over one day with his thumb sewn inside his chest ....I think it was in an effort to get the skin to grow back or something.......rattlesnake venom is nasty.....digest tissue


When I first went to Texas and asked about snakebites....they told me it's not the hunters that account for most of the bites.....it's the ladies working in their flower beds


Sorry for all the random comments.....I'm still waking up this morning

[SpitnDrum]

Ye thats a worse case scenario it doesn't happen like that with every bite.Alot of bites result in swelling'itching and redness around the bite,but occasionally it can get (gruesome).I have a impending compulse to research things that are out to get me so I have studied up on the recluse spider pretty good.They have the same venom type as a rattle snake (hemotoxic).Its native from Nebraska Illinois Iowa Kentucky Georgia Ohio and Texas.Most bites accur putting on clothing,shoes,and gloves they are not aggresive and you seldom know you have been bitten.The fangs on the recluse are so small they cant bite through fabric so it has to be skin contact.The best advise I can give is always shake your shoes out!!!!!That picture is of a large sized recluse by the way.

[retranger]

That brown recluse in the pic appears to be quite small I always thought they were bigger. I have never seen one and we don't have them here. I guess their bite and toxin makes them bigger. Thanks for the share, real educational.

[Bred64]

Spent some time in the Mojave back in the early 80's. You had to be sure and turn over all the rocks around you if you were to take a crap, usually had snakes under them. A sidewinder is really something to see when it moves.
Also made sure to turn your boots over and shake them before putting them on, the scorpions liked to get in them at night.

I was trying to nap in some shade late one day, half way asleep and dazed I felt something move across my hand. Shook my hand and tossed a scorpion up on my chest, opened my eyes and let out one of them ol girlie screams myself.

I don't like critters I can't see.....

[Dixie Belle]

The comment about the scorpions reminded me that if you guys have never hunted down here in Florida, we also have what we call a pine bark scorpion. A big one is about 2" to 2 1/2" if he is stretched out. Like their name they like the pine woods. You have to watch out if you set up under a pine or on pine straw covered ground. I never have been popped by one but I have flicked them off my arm or leg before. No one has mentioned the coral snakes we have down here either. They are neuro-toxic. But they are so small and they are also rear fanged, so they kind of have to chew on you to inject venom. As long as you don't pick one up and handle it you don't have to worry much. Just watch where you put your hands.
With all the big nasties mentioned I think my worst worry are the fire ants. You don't really know you have gotten into them until they are chewing on you. When they do start chewing you really know why they are called fire ants. I have had to come out of my pants a couple of times to get them off me when they decided to  invade my brictches legs.
So when you boys come down to hunt Osceolas, watch out for the little nasties as well as the big ones.

Lots of good hunting this spring, can't hardly wait for March 19.
Ted