The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1886-06-23

=, " WA, AolHilllS Sllken pau,
the use OF which is evident when an at
tempt is made to open the door, the
mandlbles OF the tenant being fastened
to It, while the spider braces back with
Its legs against the walls and holds it
down. So effectuaI is this method of
closing the portcullis that often the
hinge is torn apart before the spider
will release his hold. On one occasion
when the door did give, the Infatuated
insect released its hold and sprang at
least twelve inches at the offender,
showing decidedly aggressive nature.
The ferocity of these insect tigers,
however, is displayed when in chase of
prey, and the size of the animals they
attack is sometimes astonishing. A
large one has been seen to attack a
young gopher. The latter had tunneled
along the edge of an adobe tract, COM
ing up within two or three feet of the
door of large spiders trap, and soon
began series of short and cratic mi
grations from its hole; each time lo.d-
ing it's pouches with bits of grass and
weed. The spider, in making its trap,
had fastened in bit of the latter, and
when this was pulled out by the gopher
the hinge gave way, and in second a
ball OF hair and fur was rolling about,
and twelve legs and claws were grasp
ing the air. The spider had rushed out
suddenly, and with quick leap seized
the unlucky gopher near the throat, and
had evidently penetrated it with its poi
son mandibles. The gopher, terrified at
the assault, at first backed toward its
hole, but the pain caused it to defend it.
self and the two were soon in a san
culinary struggle; the spider merely re-
tanning its hold, relying upon its poi
son, while the gopher struck and paved
the insect with its claws, also endeavor-
ing to use its powerful teeth. The re-
suit of this was that the ground for sew
eral inches about was soon covered with
gopher's blood and SPIDERS hair and
legs. Over and over the combatants
rolled. Finally the gopher, rising on
its hind legs, tore the spider off and
staggered to It's hole. where it undoubt-
edly succumbed.
The poison of these spiders is proba-
bly, more virulent one time than anoth-
er, and is absurdly exaggerated in Mex
loo, where l have been told that to even
allow tarantula to walk over person
during the intense heat of Summer,
would be productive of fatal results.
The truth is, that in certain cases the
bite proves fatal, just as people have been
killed by the bite of a wasp, the fright
and nervous shock acting together to
produce such deadly result. The ma
jority of small birds, mammals and rep
tiles often succumb to the poison. The
great spider does much of its foraging
at night; attacking the mole, crickets,
mice and various insects that suit it's
palate. In some experiments tried with
a mouse and tarantula, this being the
popular name in this section, both being
placed in a box together, the former
showed Immediately its distress and ter
ror. Either bitter experience or
instinct warned it that the hide
GUS zsereature was a mortal enemy.
The spider remained perfectly
quiet, but the unfortunate quadruped
lost it's head and darted over the hairy
insect, whereupon a fierce struggle was
commenced. Their movements could
be followed, but in less than three min
utes the spider was torn in pieces by the
little animal, that a few minutes later
dropped upon its Side, gasped and died.
The tarantula has few enemies.
Some of the large insectivor-
GUS birds Gas the butcher
bird) would probably attack it, but
its enemies may practically be confined
to a large insect called the tarantula
hawk, that seems to be the only insect
that knows the open sesame of the big
spider. The latter when returning to
its trap at full speed, can lift the lid and
slide in so delicately that its disappear
ance appears almost miraculous. It
would seem as though the hawk watched
this performance, as it finds the trap
with comparative ease, lifts the silk door
and darts in, overpowering the spider
and killing or paralyzing it. In the
body it deposits its eggs. The latter in
time hatch, the young tarantula hawks
feeding upon the body that had formed
their birthplace. Thus the hawk not
only destroys the great spider but con-
verts it's body into storehouse for its
eggs and the trap for a home for the
coming brood, who, perhaps, have got
their first suggestions as to tarantula-
hunting. This method of providing for
the future young is found among a large
number Of this tribe, and when it is re-
membered that many of them only para
lyze their victims, putting them on ice
as it were, so that they will sleep until
the eggs that have been deposited in the
body are Matched it will be considered
most remarkable.
The tarantula finds one willy victim
that it only captures by piecemeal, and
that by accident. The little brown
lizard that frequents the clearings is
sometimes caught mapping, and before
it can escape the huge spider is upon it,
and seizes the slender tail, confident
perhaps of dinner. But nature has
provided the lizard with method of
escape. The first crunch of the mandi-
BILE into the delicate skin and the tail is
completely whisked off, the cunning
lizard darting away and leaving the
dry but squirming caudal extremity be-
hind. At times the body OF the lizard
is seized, when the victim soon ceases
his struggles, probably quickly over
come by the virulent poison.
1t would seem a difficult feat to tame
a tarantula, yet they are susceptible to
kind treatment and will recognize their
owners or the one that feeds them, and