So, when folding a just-cleaned pillowcase today, I felt something crawl onto my hand. When I saw a massive (by Swiss standards) spider there, I shrieked like a schoolgirl, quickly threw the pillowcase down onto the bed and did some weird little panic dance to shake whatever I thought the spider had left on my skin off.

As I looked back down, it hadn't moved at all. So I took the opportunity to grab my camera and snap a couple photos. Here they are:



As I usually do, I grabbed a glass cup and small plate, scooped it up and began staring at it. My left hand was only a few inches from it, though the glass was in between. When I shifted my fingers, it literally sprang toward my hand. I even spotted a couply tiny little fangs rearing up from the front of it. WHAT THE <@$?! In hindsight, I wished I had taken a couple more photos and looked at it a bit closer, but as you can imagine, I quickly threw it outside the second story window.

Then I got to thinking about how it seemed abnormally big for the region. The physical and behavioral attributes also seemed a bit odd. Then I realized that the pillowcase belonged to our Honduran friend's house, where my girlfriend's parents stayed over the weekend.

Anyone able to positively ID it??? Did I unleash an invasive species into the wild?

When I do that they pull a full on Peter Parker and I find the thing dangling from my arm after I close the window. It's like when you flick a booger, it always ends up on your collar or something. At least that's what I've heard.

LOL it was definitely something on my mind. I sat there with the trapped spider for a good 10 seconds, debating the most effective way to throw it without it having a chance to shoot me with it's anal harpoon. I was happy to watch it soar to the bottom.

A quick search through google images shows it's probably a huntsman spider.
Of course we need to be sure, so please pop outside and bring it back in for a close up.
Poor thing must be freezing out there anyway.

If I was to have a guess it looks like a largish common house spider. I don't think its the giant house spider as the legs on your picture appear a bit too thick for that.

We had a very similar one on the outside of our building by our kitchen windown last year. It stayed there for several months, always in exactly the same place. I'm pretty sure it actually grew bigger during that period so it must have been catching something. It wasn't until mid December that it finally vanished.

Auurgh... it looks just like the "jumping" spider in Natal SA! They would keep their legs at straight angles, like your one in the photo - and when you came to mash it, it would jump at you. I`m going to google all the SA spiders now to see if it does match up. Better report that one ..... to the Swiss Spider Federation before it ... nah .... it needs a mate to multiply, if it doesnt freeze to death first!

I don't know why, because I hate spiders, but I can never resist these kind of threads.

Try this...

http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/Hondura...nids/index.htm

Could it be a wolf spider?