BajaNomad

TARANTULAS in Baja. <;~O. ......

micah202 - 2-17-2018 at 08:26 AM

I think we got dear Gailah over her fear of household spiders,, stopped to camp in the desert between Insurgents and Loreto,,,,Gail made a lovely risotto while I grilled some fish and prawns on a fire,, all ready as the sun set, chiraz poured,,,, then Gail started FREAKING out..... not unusual being an arachnophobe in Baja..... so I calmly turned around to see a .....4" tarantula,,, I kid you not!!!! <;~O

I have a feeling Gail's now over any worry of anything under 2"!!
Hopefully, she will be convinced that no such creatures live near the waterfront, then we'll still get out to San Nicholas in a day or two, lol.
.....Did some reading, it's good to know that tarantulas are relatively harmless to humans, and indeed it's the very dry desert they prefer,, nonetheless, I did a particularly carefully job of packing the car, as we made retreat to the comforts of town and motel,, an important part of the client's integrating such experience. <;~)

How often are tarantulas spotted in Baja? Certainly never come across them myself in the ~6mo of time I've camped here over the years. The closest I've come would be a 2cm scorpion I saw in the 80's!

....got any tarantula stories yourself?

[Edited on 2-17-2018 by micah202]

4x4abc - 2-17-2018 at 08:47 AM

Baja is home to many many Tarantulas.
They are very peaceful and kind animals.
I see them in camp and I see them in my house.
Sometimes I pick them up to demonstrate how docile they are and of course to freak everyone out.



Paco Facullo - 2-17-2018 at 08:48 AM

Isn't that always the case, the person with whatever phobia somehow "attracts" that to which they fear most ?

Did you also know that Tarantulas are eatable , You should have thrown that sucker on the BarBie and ate it.

Facing one's fears head on is a vary popular and effective way of overcoming them ......

I like my Tarantulas slathered in a Jack Daniels BBQ sauce meself...
and no, they don't taste like chicken ..................
.

Paco Facullo - 2-17-2018 at 08:53 AM

4x4abc,

I see you enjoy tarantulas also, as you have a live one on your kitchen chopping block, with knife and spoon at the ready.

What's your favorite way to prepare them ?

chuckie - 2-17-2018 at 09:07 AM

They make great pets....

AKgringo - 2-17-2018 at 09:08 AM

It was not in Baja, but on the mainland (Manzanillo) we encountered a spider much larger than a tarantula.

The body was not that much larger, but it had long, hairless legs, sort of like a daddy long legs on steroids!

Continuing the culinary theme, it covered an area the size of a dinner plate when it was walking.


[Edited on 2-17-2018 by AKgringo]

4x4abc - 2-17-2018 at 09:11 AM

main thing is to keep them around for a while (like chicken) and let them gain some weight. They grow so much slower than chicken though.
I prefer them as a crunchy snack, salt, pepper, chile, lime.
A quick dive into hot oil gets them there.
Perfect to Tequila

bonanza bucko - 2-17-2018 at 09:55 AM

We used to fly to Alfonsina's at Gonzaga Bay from San Diego and sometimes we had to land at Ranch Santa Ynez at Catavinia when the runway at Alfy's was under water -- twice a month. We also stopped at Rancho Santa Ynez for gas sometimes. But in the spring the runways was covered.....covered!!.. sometimes with tarantulas such that we couldn't land without killing about a million of them and getting tarantula guts all over the airplane:-)

So we had to go down to the dry lakebed behind the dunes at Punta Bufeo....then we were forced..... :-)...to walk over the dunes to the cantina for heuvos rancheros while the tide went out.

Tough life....I REALLY miss it.

MulegeAL - 2-17-2018 at 10:43 AM

This guy was crossing the highway about 30 miles west of Vizcaino, sniffing around for a hot date....

DanO - 2-17-2018 at 11:04 AM

I've only run across one over the years, but I know there are more around because we see the occasional tarantula hawk buzzing around.

billklaser - 2-17-2018 at 11:57 AM

Just driving on TP-1 if you keep your eyes open, there are a lot seen crossing the road.

David K - 2-17-2018 at 12:09 PM

Is TP-1 = Trans-Peninsular One (ie. Mexico Highway #1)?
Creative!

bajabuddha - 2-17-2018 at 01:33 PM

the fuzzy Li'l guys are nocturnal hunters, so you usually don't see many in daylight unless rain sends them out of their burrows usually. I had one in my back yard a few years back I named "Herman", would play with him every so often. If you see a hole in the ground an inch or so wide and a kind of webbed trap door over it, sit down with a twig and tickle the webs lightly. You might get to shake hands with one. :coolup:

Rossman - 2-17-2018 at 02:29 PM

I have seen a few here in Asuncion but coincidentally, one came calling in my kitchen for the last two nights in a row. Last night I moved him to a new neighborhood.

JZ - 2-17-2018 at 02:41 PM

We saw 2 in December. My Mexican friend picked one up.


gueribo - 2-17-2018 at 08:52 PM

Encountered a big fluffy one in the porta-potty at base camp in Santa Teresa canyon. Didn't stop those seasoned, fearless vaquero guides from sleeping on the ground!

paranewbi - 2-18-2018 at 06:11 AM

Nearly all of the Tarantula's that are found out in the open are males. You can identify the male by the hook on it's forearm (see 4x4abc photo). This arm traps the forearms of the female as she rears up to fang the male who is just trying to mate with her. He uses his hind leg to place his half of the DNA on her abdomen and then pushing off makes his escape (all of this in a standing position/no missionary style here...tarantula porn if your bent that way). Often he's not that fast and she kills him.

Once the male mates it sets off a clock and he dies in about a year...so the drive to keep wandering and mating. The female will make a nest and stay within a 36" circumference of that initial nest her entire life (the ones in the ground). She will give birth to a hundreds of little ones at each birthing and will eat most of them. The females will molt twice in the first five years and then once every year after that...thus you can judge their age if you have them long enough.

The California browns are the most common in Mex and southern Cali. On Mainland your most likely to see the red legged with red rings around their legs. If you keep one they will climb up corners of a room and rest at ceiling level there just like any little spider you find in your home. They love to sit on warm tv's if you have the old box style...when it's on. It's ok to let them run loose although they are attracted to body warmth and will climb under the sheets with you once in a while...just check when you walk into a room so you don't step on 'em.

It is extremely safe to hold them flat handed...they have to rear up and expose their curved fangs to get you...very hard for them to bite a flat surface. Never let a nervous person try this because they have not bone structure they burst in their abdomen when they hit the ground from being dropped.

Best to fry them if you want to eat them...this way fully cooks the abdomen jelly. You can order them on line from Vietnam if you want to do this for a lark.

Use to raise them. Biggest one I ever had was a South America red legged the size of my hand...you could actually feel the weight of her.

[Edited on 2-18-2018 by paranewbi]

bajamary1952 - 2-18-2018 at 07:31 PM

I used to have several different tarantulas before I started the nomadic life; I really like them.
This article says Mexico leads the world in species:
https://mexiconewsdaily.com/news/mexico-leads-world-for-tara...

surabi - 2-20-2018 at 09:29 PM

Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo  
It was not in Baja, but on the mainland (Manzanillo) we encountered a spider much larger than a tarantula.

The body was not that much larger, but it had long, hairless legs, sort of like a daddy long legs on steroids!

Continuing the culinary theme, it covered an area the size of a dinner plate when it was walking.


[Edited on 2-17-2018 by AKgringo]



Sure it was a spider, not a cancle? Long long legs, square body with crab-like pincers and long anntenae. Called a false scorpion or whip tail scorpion in English, but in fact neither a spider nor a scorpion. Harmless, have no toxin.

micah202 - 2-21-2018 at 06:58 AM

Of course, i can be kayaking with poor Gailah, she ever freeks to see crabs scurrying on the rocks, even bigger spiders creatures! <;~O

AKgringo - 2-21-2018 at 07:50 AM

Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo  
It was not in Baja, but on the mainland (Manzanillo) we encountered a spider much larger than a tarantula.

The body was not that much larger, but it had long, hairless legs, sort of like a daddy long legs on steroids!

Continuing the culinary theme, it covered an area the size of a dinner plate when it was walking.


[Edited on 2-17-2018 by AKgringo]



Sure it was a spider, not a cancle? Long long legs, square body with crab-like pincers and long anntenae. Called a false scorpion or whip tail scorpion in English, but in fact neither a spider nor a scorpion. Harmless, have no toxin.


Sounds like the critter we found, except the claws had spines,not pincers. It was huge!




surabi - 2-25-2018 at 01:56 PM

Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo  
Quote: Originally posted by surabi  
Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo  
It was not in Baja, but on the mainland (Manzanillo) we encountered a spider much larger than a tarantula.

The body was not that much larger, but it had long, hairless legs, sort of like a daddy long legs on steroids!

Continuing the culinary theme, it covered an area the size of a dinner plate when it was walking.


[Edited on 2-17-2018 by AKgringo]



Sure it was a spider, not a cancle? Long long legs, square body with crab-like pincers and long anntenae. Called a false scorpion or whip tail scorpion in English, but in fact neither a spider nor a scorpion. Harmless, have no toxin.


Sounds like the critter we found, except the claws had spines,not pincers. It was huge!






Yes, when I said pincers, I was referring to what you are calling
claws. They do have spiny looking stuff on the claws. Yes, they get huge. A friend and I discovered a pure white albino one in his bodega- have seen a lot of cancles, but never an albino before or since. They're good guys to have around, in spite of their horrific look. They consume scorpions and other insects.