(September 5, 2014 at 7:01 pm)Cthulhu Dreaming Wrote: Seen plenty of sharks while scuba diving - they're not nearly as threatening as you might expect. On the other hand, moray eels and stonefish I give a lot of respect to. Morays because they're hostile and capable of doing real damage, and stonefish because they aren't hostile - but they look like damn rocks and have extremely poisonous spines.

Animals are sick!

(September 5, 2014 at 6:56 pm)ShaMan Wrote: I'm a surfer in No. Cal. Plenty of sharks (so they say). I've never feared sharks. I LOVE spiders. I'm not sure I... never mind... Carry on.

Ahhh! Same!

Back home I would swim in the same bay that was known for great white attacks. You just have to know when and where not to swim. Don't be dumb and swim where seals feed at night and you're golden.

I too love spiders. I have respect for the ones that can do damage and promptly remove them out of the reach of my young nephew but other than that, they're free to roam as they please. My last 'pet' was a 7-legged black widow named Saith (Welsh for seven). I had her for about a week, fed her and observed her and then released her.

(September 5, 2014 at 6:50 pm)lifesagift Wrote: yep, but spiders won't bite your leg off !

Ever seen the more grisly results from a Brown Recluse spider bite?!? People have lost limbs to those little fuckers. Not to mention spiders whose bite is or can be lethal. Add in the fact that they're small, creepy looking, 8-legged, can (and even like to) hide in small places and you're never more than 5 feet from one.

These are the reasons many people consider them scarier than sharks.

(September 5, 2014 at 7:19 pm)GalacticBusDriver Wrote:

(September 5, 2014 at 6:50 pm)lifesagift Wrote: yep, but spiders won't bite your leg off !

Ever seen the more grisly results from a Brown Recluse spider bite?!? People have lost limbs to those little fuckers. Not to mention spiders whose bite is or can be lethal. Add in the fact that they're small, creepy looking, 8-legged, can (and even like to) hide in small places and you're never more than 5 feet from one.

These are the reasons many people consider them scarier than sharks.

And you can't accidentally swallow sharks in your sleep. If you could, then I'd be scared of sharks

Sharks are not our predator. Spiders are harder to avoid than sharks, so they worry us more. Besides, people seem to be instinctually afraid of poisonous things.

(September 5, 2014 at 7:19 pm)GalacticBusDriver Wrote:

(September 5, 2014 at 6:50 pm)lifesagift Wrote: yep, but spiders won't bite your leg off !

Ever seen the more grisly results from a Brown Recluse spider bite?!? People have lost limbs to those little fuckers. Not to mention spiders whose bite is or can be lethal. Add in the fact that they're small, creepy looking, 8-legged, can (and even like to) hide in small places and you're never more than 5 feet from one.

These are the reasons many people consider them scarier than sharks.

With the greatest respect that is rubbish... people are not scared of spiders because of the results from a brown recluse spider bite... people are scared of spiders because of their legs..

(September 5, 2014 at 7:22 pm)Chad32 Wrote: Besides, people seem to be instinctually afraid of poisonous things.

Such as other people?

(September 5, 2014 at 7:23 pm)lifesagift Wrote:

(September 5, 2014 at 7:19 pm)GalacticBusDriver Wrote: Ever seen the more grisly results from a Brown Recluse spider bite?!? People have lost limbs to those little fuckers. Not to mention spiders whose bite is or can be lethal. Add in the fact that they're small, creepy looking, 8-legged, can (and even like to) hide in small places and you're never more than 5 feet from one.

These are the reasons many people consider them scarier than sharks.

With the greatest respect that is rubbish... people are not scared of spiders because of the results from a brown recluse spider bite... people are scared of spiders because of their legs..

Where did I say there was a sole reason?!? I even mentioned them being 8-legged. "With the greatest respect," reading comprehension a weakness of yours?

Personally, I think people are afraid of the unknown. Such as the dark. People aren't afraid of the darkness (absence of light) itself, they're afraid of the unknown... what may or may not be lurking in the dark.

To most people sharks are cool. Most don't go attacking humans for no reason. If you're on the beach, you can see them heading towards the shore. Lots of info known about them, Shark Week, blah blah.

But spiders are sneaky. You don't know they are there until night arrives (most are nocturnal). They're tiny and can get through nearly any crack or crevice. Most of them bite if provoked. Some bite just to nom. Some are large. Most are incredibly fast. Some are lethal. Some destroy flesh. Others have venom that go for the nervous system. A tiny bite can produce extreme pain.

I can see why people are afraid of spiders but honestly if you just did a bit of research on spiders that are native to your location, you'd find out you have nothing to legitimately fear. You're a huge human. They are a tiny arachnid. If you don't like, trap and remove.

Okay I'm officially rambling. Sleep time.

(September 5, 2014 at 7:23 pm)lifesagift Wrote:

(September 5, 2014 at 7:19 pm)GalacticBusDriver Wrote: Ever seen the more grisly results from a Brown Recluse spider bite?!? People have lost limbs to those little fuckers. Not to mention spiders whose bite is or can be lethal. Add in the fact that they're small, creepy looking, 8-legged, can (and even like to) hide in small places and you're never more than 5 feet from one.

These are the reasons many people consider them scarier than sharks.

With the greatest respect that is rubbish... people are not scared of spiders because of the results from a brown recluse spider bite... people are scared of spiders because of their legs..

But lobsters have more legs than spiders, and fear of lobsters is pretty rare, I think.

Boru