These black widows always take my breath away with how gorgeous they are. Why doesn’t everyone keep these as pets?
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
These black widows always take my breath away with how gorgeous they are. Why doesn’t everyone keep these as pets?
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I much prefer guinea pigs. Just as round but without the fangs and poison.
She is gloriously shiny and elegant but I will pass. Wasps are also beautiful creatures, but I wouldn’t try to pet one or keep them as pets.
IMO, if you can’t pet it, it’s doesn’t fulfill the basic requirements to be a pet. Bonus if it makes adorable chirring noises or purrs when you pet it.
Sorry, PZ
Cats are the perfect pets.
You don’t know my cat.
Ah, but I do, PZ
We have three cats. Two are sweet cuddlers and perfect pets.
The third was rescued as an injured feral kitten. One of her front legs had to be amputated.
Although we’ve had her in our household for over eight years now, she is still mostly feral.
She never allows us to touch her and only comes out of hiding for meals.
Your cat is a sweetheart in comparison.
The day job involves dealing with plenty of fangs, poison, skulking in corners, sticky webs, and cannibalism. I’m afraid that’s not what I need in a pet.
I could use a little bit of fangs and venom around here. I don’t suppose they like the cold and eat mice, do they?
When I was a kid in Tulsa, Oklahoma, we had some large orb weavers there. Large, and almost round as ping pong balls. A full inch in diameter. A nice shiny black and yellow. I cannot find an image on line of any of these. They built large and beautiful webs, sometimes 4 or 5 feet wide. They did not like being handled, but as far as I know they never bit anybody.
• They don’t like the cold
• They can eat mice
Mate, we know what you’re up to. You’re trying to make tarantulas look cuddly by comparison. We ain’t buyin’.
X-D
Very Xmas-y like a bauble; on a conifer tree for yuletide but .. bit late for that now..
When I tried to photograph a black widow a while back, I found I couldn’t do it without taking an inadvertent selfie, my reflection in her shiny carapace. I can’t say for sure if the photographer appears in the image you’ve posted.