I've been off work today so I decided to do some gardening out in the sunshine

I spotted this guy first:

I've been trying to get a photo of a black tunnelweb spider for ages but the buggers move too fast!

So when I spotted the web I went and get my camera ready for snapping.

And here it is. The green thing is the tip of my index finger in my gardening glove so this is maybe half as big as they can get when fully grown. This one's body was about 3cm long.

They can bite but are not poisonous like the Aussie funnelweb

What is their bite like?

These spiders are capable of delivering a painful bite because they have very large fangs. However, the symptoms of the bite are quite mild and are described as similar to a normal reaction to a bee sting. The bite should be cleaned and watched for signs of infection.

Info from here:

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington, NZ - Black tunnelweb spider (Porrhothele antipodiana)

I took a little movie as well - I'll stick it on YouTube

I am not going to open this thread or look at the very colourful creepie crawlies…………………………….ooops!!............... EEEEK

I am not going to open this thread or look at the very colourful creepie crawlies…………………………….ooops!!............... EEEEK

I knew you'd have to look!

Love the pyjamas on the 1st cutie :thumbup:

I knew you'd have to look!

It will be your fault when I scream the house down with my nightmares this evening and the neighbours finally get me committed.:(

Farewell cruel world…..

Here's a video to make your nightmares complete

Sorry about the quality - Youtube killed it!

Keep on posting them up Rob, (some people will have to resist the temptation to look:rofl:) I love seeing different creepy crawlies ...does NZ have snakes?

Here's a video to make your nightmares complete

Sorry about the quality - Youtube killed it!

I can honestly say I have resisted the urge to even glance at you link. Having said that it might actually be baby kiwis and you are teasing me…………….??? Decisions, decisions

It's not cute little kiwis. Not unless this is an odd genetic mutation with 8 legs, bit of fur, and scuttles off when poked with a stick.

It's not cute little kiwis. Not unless this is an odd genetic mutation with 8 legs, bit of fur, and scuttles off when poked with a stick.

I think I might remove my subscription from this post, just in case I get tempted to have a peak. Thanks for the heads-up:D

Rob... please stop!

they are all foul!!! lol

Rob, do you get the "Huntsman" spider in NZ?

Where we stay at a mates outside Perth in WA we gets loads of them, and they are big, but they are supposed to eat the "Back Widows" so we leave them alone.

Rob spends weeks on end looking for the very rare creepy crawlies that occasionally inhabit NZ. They almost have no Creepy Crawlies in the whole country, but he does his best to root them out. The reality is the country is full of fluffy baby Kiwis and Weka chicks. Plus cuddly Possums and bunny rabbits. Honest, he just does this stuff to scare us off from emigrating.

Rob, do you get the "Huntsman" spider in NZ?

Where we stay at a mates outside Perth in WA we gets loads of them, and they are big, but they are supposed to eat the "Back Widows" so we leave them alone.

We do!! Some got over here on cargo ships from Australia. They're very rare here because the climate's too cold for them. I thik they're just up near Auckland where it's milder.

I do not want to see one of those!! Up to 200mm across :eek::eek:

Here's something for Amanda

SWMBO was once on her own in a house near Cairns in a thunderstorm. The pool overflowed and drove all of the local "wildlife" into the house!!

She killed about a dozen of those using industrial strength RAID and a brush handle!!

Right I have watched all the videos whilst making a erghhhhhhhhhhwwwwwwwwrrrrrrrrrrrraraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrr noise and curling my feet up in the wrong direction (if you can see what I mean). I am not watching any more, they are sick and immoral and really scary. I HATE spiders.

You know you can't resist watching them.

You like being creeped out really don't you?

You know you can't resist watching them.

You like being creeped out really don't you?

I am cursed with an inquisitive mind (well my old teachers said I was just plain nosey, but you get the drift:D)

Well I've just been doing a bit more gardening and I was clearing around an old wall made of round rocks.

Well the wall has pretty much collapsed so i was removing the rocks and stacking them up.

Well these spiders like to live under rocks, and I got to the end bit, moved a rock and it was like that bit at the end of Arachnophobia! Except you couldn't see the stick controlling this one!

It was over twice the size of yesterday's one! So I "dropped" a rock on it then under the next one was another, just as big, than a third one! And this one had about a hundred babies!

All in all I think I squished about twelve like yesterday's one, two of the big ones and all of the babies :eek:

So I daren't go back there now in case the last big spider is plotting my doom!!

Then I noticed that where i'd been stacking the rocks I'd stirred up a nest of hornets or small bees or something. didn't go too close to find out.

There's lots of life in New Zealand!!

Well I've just been doing a bit more gardening and I was clearing around an old wall made of round rocks.

Well the wall has pretty much collapsed so i was removing the rocks and stacking them up.

Well these spiders like to live under rocks, and I got to the end bit, moved a rock and it was like that bit at the end of Arachnophobia! Except you couldn't see the stick controlling this one!

It was over twice the size of yesterday's one! So I "dropped" a rock on it then under the next one was another, just as big, than a third one! And this one had about a hundred babies!

All in all I think I squished about twelve like yesterday's one, two of the big ones and all of the babies :eek:

So I daren't go back there now in case the last big spider is plotting my doom!!

Then I noticed that where i'd been stacking the rocks I'd stirred up a nest of hornets or small bees or something. didn't go too close to find out.

There's lots of life in New Zealand!!

Bad Karma heading your way methinks :eek:

Here's something for Amanda

OMFG You have got to be fecking joking :eek: I have to get swmbo to remove house spiders because I hate them. I think i would have a heart attack if I saw one of those in the house:thumbdwn:

So I "dropped" a rock on it then under the next one was another, just as big, than a third one

I like your thinking "so I dropped a big rock on it" :rofl:

you shouldn't kill them!!!!!! Spiders are great:D

Is there any of those creepy crawly's that are dangerouse to dogs and cats?

great pics there rob,that spider is beutiful,and everyone who is scared of those huntmans is a wuss,they can't do you any harm:rofl:

I know spiders are great and normally would leave them alone, but the tunnelwebs are big enough to bite dogs, cats and hoomans, so they must go!