Fall Weather is the Best for Tarantulas
By Regina Elling

Park Ranger Kyle Ickes points out a tarantula hole.Photo by Regina Elling

Fall is here; students are back in school, Halloween is just around the corner and the tarantulas are out and about all over town.

Uh, what was that about the tarantulas again?

"When the weather changes in the fall is usually the time that all the male tarantulas are out looking for girlfriends," says Kyle Ickes, senior park ranger for the Department of Parks and Recreation. Ickes works at Dos Picos Park in Ramona, and is used to finding the hairy spiders on his rounds.

But Ickes doesn't just randomly discover them - he actually searches for them.

"Unfortunately, they have a favorite place to hide, and it can very unpleasant for our campers and guests," he explains, pointing to a large trash can in one of the many restrooms in the park. "It can be unnerving if you aren't expecting it."

It is probable that unexpectedly finding a big, hairy spider in the restroom would startle some of the park visitors.

A tarantula crawls along a wall. Photo by Richard Elling

But Ickes is quick to reassure the fearful that "there really are no deadly tarantulas here."

"They bite, but their bite is really no worse than a bee sting," he explains. "They have fangs like little black rosebush thorns."

He adds, "They normally aren't even aggressive unless they are really angry."

So, exactly what is it that would make a tarantula "angry?"

Being disturbed is likely to upset them. After all, any tarantula one encounters is likely to be a male on the hunt for a mate, and he will have quite enough on his mind.

"The female tarantulas usually stay in their homes, or holes in the ground," he says. "The males have to first find the females, and then ask very nicely if either the female will come out, or they are allowed to come in," he says.

The answer could be no, which might be discouraging. But there are a few females who say yes - and then kill the male.

"They don't kill the males as often as the female black widow spiders kill their mates, but it does happen," says Ickes.

Safe in their holes, the females can live 20 years. But the wandering done by the males shortens their lifespan considerably; males only live for two or three years on average. After all, they are not the only ones on the hunt.

"Some birds, lizards and coyotes are just some of the predators who like to try and eat tarantulas," Ickes says. "But they are hairy for a reason; they will lose their hairs when attacked."

And while a tiny little hair doesn't seem like much of a defense, it can carry a big surprise.

"The hairs act as irritants to vertebrate respiratory systems," says Ickes. "While the coyotes are coughing, the tarantula can usually manage to escape," he says.

As for someone who unexpectedly finds a tarantula, Ickes has a few words of advice.

"We encourage our guests to just leave them alone," Ickes says. "And that way there will be plenty more tarantulas around to visit next year."