Pam’s Perspective
Pam Otto is the Manager of Nature Programs and Interpretive Services for the St. Charles Park District
The other night my folks were over for dinner, and my dad happened to comment that The Sound of Music was going to be on television. After a few moments of musing at how and why it always seems to get shown during the Christmas season (even though the movie has absolutely no reference to any holidays whatsoever) the conversation moved on to other things—namely movies that ARE about the holidays, like Christmas in Connecticut and The Bishop’s Wife.
What we didn’t realize at the time—and what I was fortunate to discover only after the folks had gone home, since my mom would surely have been, at a minimum, distressed and, worst case, horrified—was just how close my own home was to a certain obscure but memorable (at least for me) Sound of Music quote.
The line comes from the thunderstorm scene, a somewhat famous sequence where Maria comforts the children by singing My Favorite Things.
Shortly before the gang bursts into song, eldest daughter Liesl enters the room via a window, which we are led to believe is on the second floor of the manor von Trapp. (But if you watch the movie enough times, you’ll notice she approaches from the side, not from below. Hmm.) Any way, when Maria asks “How in the world did you climb up here?” Liesl responds innocently enough that it’s really no big deal and notes that “Louisa can make it with a whole jar of spiders in her hand.”
“Sssspiders?!” Maria gasps.
Spiders. Yep. That’s what I found not long after the folks left. An amazing quantity, and probably well over a jarful, doing quite well, in the gutted guest bathroom that’s awaiting renovation.
Now I suppose that news in itself might give some people pause, especially if their list of Favorite Things does not include spiders. But since mine does, I wasn’t too bothered and actually kind of proud of the habitat that had developed in the dark recesses behind the drywall and between the studs.
The spiders, for their part, seemed to be getting on quite well. Webs stretched across virtually every inch of open space along the bare walls, while insect carcasses littered the floor—a clear testament to the effectiveness of spider silk as a means of catching prey. (Fun facts: Spider silk is finer than human hair, yet stronger than steel of the same diameter. It’s tougher and more elastic than silkworm silk, and retains its properties even at temperatures as low as -40F.)
But as I surveyed the thriving group, I was a little disappointed by its lack of diversity. For the most part they were cellar spiders, Pholcus spp., those small-bodied, spindly-legged spiders that inhabit, well, cellars. Big ones, little ones, males, females…that was the extent of the variation among the homogenous group. Or so I thought.
Then I saw It.
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Pam’s Perspective – Page 2
Or I suppose I should say Her: a large female funnel web spider, family Agelenidae genus Tegenaria and, if I had to guess, species domestica, the barn funnel-weaving spider.
You’ve probably seen funnel web spiders, or at least their work, many times. Their webs can span several inches, and look like a sheet of fine mesh, but with a small tunnel, or funnel, at one end where the spider typically lies in wait.
In some species, the meshy part is sticky and traps prey insects as they try to walk over it—much the same way as those glue traps work to catch mice and other rodents. In other species, the mesh is not sticky, but rather functions as a trip line. When an insect treads upon it, the spider senses the vibrations and pounces, ambushing its prey.
“My” spider seemed quite content in her amazing funnel web, darting out when I lightly tapped it and retreating to the safety of the funnel when I rapped too hard. When I got too curious and “goosed” her from the bottom of her funnel, she shot out with lightning speed and shot across 16 in. of drywall to take shelter behind the next 2×4 stud. (Another fun fact: Agelenidae are capable of running at speeds of 50 body lengths per second, and hold a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for fastest spider speed.)
Compared to her Pholcus neighbors and other “typical” house spiders, this funnel weaver isn’t just speedy, she’s also gargantuan. Her body measures about ¾-in. in length; with her long leg extended, she’s probably close to 2 in. long. Most important, her abdomen is nice and plump.
It could be that Miss Spider has just been doing lots feasting and has added some extra weight. Or, with any luck, a Mr. Spider has come along and his visit will result in the appearance of an egg sac in the funnel web. Egg sacs of course mean eggs and, at some future point, more funnel weaving spiders.
Maybe enough for another jarful, a few hundred more of My Favorite Things.
Pam Otto is the manager of nature programs and interpretive services for the St. Charles Park District. She can be reached at 630-513-4346 or potto@stcparks.org. And she fully understands if anyone and everyone she knows will now visit her only at work.