Thursday 20 September 2012

Autumn commeth

Two in your face indicators of autumn arriving here in Llysyfran. 

One is the large amount of leaf litter we suddenly start seeing.  We are surrounded by trees and for a few weeks now they have started to shed their leaves.  In a few more weeks it will be an almost full time job trying to clear them up daily. 

The other and most unwelcome (especially as they seem to congregate in the bedroom, and on my side of the room too) are spiders.  Very large ones.  I can't quite believe we get so many, one of the drawbacks I suppose of being in the countryside.  They stand out somewhat on the stark cream walls (the walls used to be a dark purple when we moved in).

Largest spiders in the UK – Tegenaria gigantea
One night last week I saw one come scurrying out from behind the wardrobe.  Once I'd screamed and got that one scooped up and put firmly outside another appeared from the same hiding place - and after only about ten minutes respite.  Then I found a third on the wall opposite.  I was really freaked and hardly slept at all. 

Monday this week I saw yet another appear from behind my wardrobe, I took a deep breath and pulled it forward and let's just say they were having a party. I've now CLOSED my window on the same wall very firmly shut.  I'm thinking of caulking it. 

I have an evening routine now, I switch the main light on and inspect all the walls.  Then I move the wardrobe on my side of the bed to check behind it for unwanted lodgers.  That's all my nerves can take. I reason that if there are any behind J's wardrobe he'll fight them off before they get to me.

Apparently in the autumn months a range of species which would normally stay outdoors do start to find their way into houses. Most will remain outdoors, but as they are quite audacious some will by chance end up in the house.  That is why they suddenly seem to materialise from nowhere.  Before closing the window I had also tried to deter them from coming in by placing conkers at every possible entry point. But this obviously wasn't working. I'm even tempted to try one of those plug in spider repellent gadgets - despite the mixed reviews.

The wayward spiders are almost always mature males who’ve set off in search of their Juliet.  As they are more mobile, they are more likely to be spotted. And being spotted they are.  I took the above photograph with shaking hands, and I believe it's the Tegenaria gigantea but I just can't look at any more pictures to identify - I'll be having nightmares tonight.

I know they do a lot of good, but that knowledge does not trump my irrational fear of the big spiders (I can live with the small ones).  Can't they find their fun somewhere else but my side of the bedroom for heaven's sake.

4 comments:

Rachel Selby said...

Lovely! I don't mind the leaves though.

Rob-bear said...

Shw mae.

Has anyone ticketed the trees for littering?

And as for spiders, would you prefer rats and snakes?

Happy autumn!

the veg artist said...

We do get these in town as well, you know! We have a large plastic jug that normally lives in the bathroom, but does spider duty as well - plonk upside down on top of, then find card or a newspaper to slide underneath before chucking unwelcome visitor out, or, if I'm feeling really mean, make it wait until morning!

Maggie Christie said...

Leaf mould is so good for the garden though! H recently did homework on spiders. She had to think of things to find out about them so I suggested she found out why they all come indoors in September. What did she discover? "They're coming in to breed," (accompanied by disgusted expression). Be thankful they were doing "it" behind your wardrobe not in front!

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