Not what I want to find in my garden!

[Salatia]

Mum finds orange tarantula 'the size of my hand' in her garden

Her son insisted to keep it as a pet

www.nottinghampost.com

Who did this?

So many bits of this I'm stuck on and wondering if someone just made up a weird dramatic story, maybe to get word of the rescue out? Workmen asking the homeowner to do something about the giant spider they didn't even know about seems a bit odd to me for one. But also the whole article feels odd. Terrified of spiders but find tarantulas calmer - okay fine, but I'd also not be sticking my hands close enough to *any* random one I found to scoot it into a box, especially without any clue of the species. Does make me wonder though if they have kept some before, because to even know they may be less frantic is pretty unusual.

On top of that the way they rule it out as a pet...surely despite not being a common pet it's still the most likely source? Maybe not, but I am curious about this bit. From a 'rescue publicity' angle kind of comes across as a way to try to avoid backlash on the community while still doing the story.

I could be totally off base, but feels like it's such a particular tarantula for it to happen with - and *any* Googling of that spider is going to bring up Orange Bitey Thing. That's the sort of thing 'journalists' are typically desperate to be able to include.

Possibly did just 'happen' but thought I'd share as it's a curious one!

 

[Salatia]

Washington’s Relentless Rescue's UK

Need an immediate ID on this tarantula. It's in the back of someone's work van right now! Please do not waste our time. If you don't know don't comment

www.facebook.com

Sounds like it was in the work van, and hopped out when they went to work or something. Cheeky to insist the owner does something about it! Apparently contained quickly - and he's hooked out so could be from a collection poor boy.

If anyone involved sees this, apologies for questioning the story but it is a bizarre one! And honestly I prefer not to think of people sending an OBT on it's way into the UK countryside o.0

 

[x_raphael_xx]

"The mum added: "I put a post on Facebook asking people if they lost the pet. But it is highly unlikely that this was someone's pet because it is just not a common thing."
Highly UNLIKELY a lost pet?? We don't have wild tarantulas here in the UK. It's 100% a pet that got out.
Also, lady claims she gently edged it into a box with a lid. Thats some docile OBT lol. And I agree, if she's scared of spiders, she'd be scared of a tarantula unless shes had experiance.

 

[I just need all the T's]

Washington’s Relentless Rescue's UK

Need an immediate ID on this tarantula. It's in the back of someone's work van right now! Please do not waste our time. If you don't know don't comment

www.facebook.com

Sounds like it was in the work van, and hopped out when they went to work or something. Cheeky to insist the owner does something about it! Apparently contained quickly - and he's hooked out so could be from a collection poor boy.

If anyone involved sees this, apologies for questioning the story but it is a bizarre one! And honestly I prefer not to think of people sending an OBT on it's way into the UK countryside o.0

Unless it managed to find a home really quick the chance it would survive the winter is exactly 0

 

[Derbarbarian]

"The mum added: "I put a post on Facebook asking people if they lost the pet. But it is highly unlikely that this was someone's pet because it is just not a common thing."
Highly UNLIKELY a lost pet?? We don't have wild tarantulas here in the UK. It's 100% a pet that got out.
Also, lady claims she gently edged it into a box with a lid. Thats some docile OBT lol. And I agree, if she's scared of spiders, she'd be scared of a tarantula unless shes had experiance.

Exactly, how they could try to insinuate that it's not someone's pet baffles me, I would love to know how they would try to explain it's presence.. You don't have tarantulas in the UK lol, not only that, it's next to impossible that it hitched a ride in some cargo from Africa and just happened to escape and survive in the countryside all by its lonesome..

 

[Salatia]

"The mum added: "I put a post on Facebook asking people if they lost the pet. But it is highly unlikely that this was someone's pet because it is just not a common thing."
Highly UNLIKELY a lost pet?? We don't have wild tarantulas here in the UK. It's 100% a pet that got out.
Also, lady claims she gently edged it into a box with a lid. Thats some docile OBT lol. And I agree, if she's scared of spiders, she'd be scared of a tarantula unless shes had experiance.

Yeah that was the thing that got me 'highly unlikely to be a pet'. The FB post inevitably someone came forth and said it was theirs, but had left a cousin to look after their Ts and came back and this guy was gone...obvious skepticism in general about someone just trying for a free T, but also why leave someone who knows nothing about them in charge of an OW?

All very curious, but the rescue do seem to have this guy.

 

[Salatia]

Exactly, how they could try to insinuate that it's not someone's pet baffles me, I would love to know how they would try to explain it's presence.. You don't have tarantulas in the UK lol, not only that, it's next to impossible that it hitched a ride in some cargo from Africa and just happened to escape and survive in the countryside all by its lonesome..

That was my thinking - someone saying the chance they were a pet and ended up where they did was unlikely...but how is that less unlikely than making it across from wherever as an accidental import?!

 

[Salatia]

Unless it managed to find a home really quick the chance it would survive the winter is exactly 0

Well I'm aware of that, but I'm also aware of people with heated hobby sheds and greenhouses. The concern isn't surviving a long time but what it does during the time it *is* roaming.

 

[I just need all the T's]

Exactly, how they could try to insinuate that it's not someone's pet baffles me, I would love to know how they would try to explain it's presence.. You don't have tarantulas in the UK lol, not only that, it's next to impossible that it hitched a ride in some cargo from Africa and just happened to escape and survive in the countryside all by its lonesome..

I dunno. I know of someone who was called to help take care of a stowaway huntsman all the way from Australia. Was found in a shipping crate that went to a high end leather shop.
But survive on the loose. Especially this time year,nah I would not think it's possible.

 

[I just need all the T's]

I dunno. I know of someone who was called to help take care of a stowaway huntsman all the way from Australia. Was found in a shipping crate that went to a high end leather shop.
But survive on the loose. Especially this time year,nah I would not think it's possible.

Btw that was Australia all the way to the uk but also was in the warmer months recently

 

[DuneElliot]

Reminds me of the article of the woman in the Utah mtns (Uintas) who claimed to have been bitten 15 times by brown recluse spiders...firstly the don't live in the mountains of anywhere north, and not even in northern Utah.

However as far as finding Ts calmer...I know several people who tolerate them or even don't mind them much at all (like my sister) and aren't fearful of them compared to other spiders. The woman obviously didn't know it was an OBT at the time and it was probably cold, being outside in the UK...warm enough to still be alive but cold enough to be quite docile and almost dormant.

However, definitely a pet...obviously not anything else...that's just naivete

 

[MBullock]

Reminds me of the article of the woman in the Utah mtns (Uintas) who claimed to have been bitten 15 times by brown recluse spiders...firstly the don't live in the mountains of anywhere north, and not even in northern Utah.

However as far as finding Ts calmer...I know several people who tolerate them or even don't mind them much at all (like my sister) and aren't fearful of them compared to other spiders. The woman obviously didn't know it was an OBT at the time and it was probably cold, being outside in the UK...warm enough to still be alive but cold enough to be quite docile and almost dormant.

However, definitely a pet...obviously not anything else...that's just naivete

You can find L. Deserta in utah all over, theyre everywhere in the mojave and great basin. in spring and you'll find males everywhere.

Though i agree that 15 times is BS unless it was trapped between skin and clothing. In those cases spiders bite reflexively. It was likely a male as this species is a lithophilic commensal in burrows. Brick homes will attract recluses though.