A Huntsman I saw in NSW last year
There is a hitchhiker in my car. It’s a (rather large) spider that I discovered a few days ago. I’ll admit that it gave me a bit of a start when I first saw it. As I said, it’s pretty big. I’m pretty sure it’s a huntsman, and they tend to be about 3-4cms, or just about the size of a peach.
I first saw it one morning on my drive up to Darwin. I’d been sleeping at a rest area somewhere between Hervey Bay, Queensland and Katherine, Northern Territory. After brushing my teeth, I’d been just getting back into the car when I saw it on the mattress of my bed, right between the front seats. As I was just sitting in that front seat, the spider was about to be right next to my upper arm! Based on its location, I had also had my head nestled just near it!
I scrambled out of the car quickly, looking again, and again! Yup, it was definitely a large, spider, just hanging out in my car, along for the ride! Staying (relatively) calm, I went around to another door and got out a couple things to use to try and remove it from my car. Armed with a hand-held brush and my theracane, I came back around and tried to get it out. Since it was at a funny angle and my car has a bed and all my stuff in it, there wasn’t much room for maneuvering. Also, I didn’t want to brush it out and directly onto myself.
Finally, I had it near the door, and thought I might be able to get it out. I had it right at the outside of the car, nearly onto the top of the car! I slammed the car door, hoping it would stay out. The spider tucked itself right into the crease of the door, vanishing from sight. I opened the door to check if I’d squashed it. It scurried back into my car and down next to my seat. Then it vanished. Possibly under the driver’s seat. Possibly back behind it. I have no idea where it went, actually.
I got out a can of Mortein I had, even though that required me to reach beneath that very seat the spider had vanished under. I gave it a few sprays. I tried pulling some things out of my car to see if it would scare out of its new hiding place. No such luck. I realized that, short of pulling every single thing out of my car and shaking it all out, I wasn’t going to find this spider.
One of the biggest huntsman I saw, bigger than a baseball, in NSW
Also, I was in the middle of the outback, where it is extremely hot and there isn’t much shade. For all I knew, I could pull everything out and the spider would still be under the carpet, tucked up under the bed, hiding just about anywhere. It was greyish black, so would blend right in. I realized I probably wasn’t going to find this spider. It certainly wasn’t going to happen right there in the sun at that rest stop. I needed to get back on the road. I couldn’t exactly stare at my car in consternation all day (although I was well on may way to doing just that!).
Huntsmen tend to be pretty shy and scared of people in general. I remember friends telling me they aren’t really poisonous. At least, I hoped I remembered that correctly! I vowed that I would try to stop that night early enough to see what I was getting into that night at bedtime…or at least to give my sheets a good once-over with the flashlight before crawling into bed!
Gingerly, I got back into the driver’s seat, and started driving again. Every single itch or twinge I felt made me jump, certain that a spider was crawling over me. As I drove, I’d occasionally forget, reaching back behind my seat for something or another before suddenly remembering, whipping my hand out from the spidery abyss and into safety.
Also, there appear to be Car-Eating Cows on the Loose. Beware!
It’s been three days now. As far as I know, the huntsman still lives in my home. There’s not a lot of space to cover in there, so we’re sharing pretty close quarters. I’m actually sitting at a laundromat right now, washing all of my sheets and some clothes.
Taking the sheets off of the bed was a rather worrisome experience, but I weathered it alright, and I didn’t stumble upon the spider. She must be living underneath the bed. Hopefully she doesn’t come out at me while I’m pulling camping gear out in the middle of either Litchfield or Kakadu National Park.
Honestly, I’d rather find it during the day sometime when I can see it, get it out of my car, and be done with it. I keep worrying that it’ll surprise me while I’m driving. Probably a cop will see me weaving back and forth across the road in my shock…the potential is there for a sticky, hairy situation. I already have a bunch of crocodiles to deal with in these national parks I’ll be visiting. I feel that I would rather have the spider situation taken care of so I can be clearheaded and ready to be on the lookout for crocs. But I guess this will keep me doubly alert, right?
Fingers crossed!
(on a sucky, horiffic note: someone recently commented that she probably has a mate. and babies. oh, joy!)