Spider Hunting

As a Child, I always loved nature, outdoors and animals. I was always exploring my backyard, the streets, the rivers, beaches and outdoors with my big brother and his friends.

I was very scared of Spiders. In my backyard, we had those spider holes full of big black Spiders. I used to kill them with my brother or alone for the fun of it and to prevent them from coming inside the home.

To kill a Spider, there is a process to do it successfully. First, you have to push a stick on the ground next to the spider hole, if the ground is too hard, you have to put a bit of water to make it soft and allow the stick to go about 4 inches deep grounded. Then, little by little and slowly, you pour water inside the spider hole, like a cup of water at the time, you pour a bit and pause, to see if the Spider is coming up. Don't you think that the spider is going to come out running like a crazy one,... no, no, no, Spiders are smart. They will crawl up to the top of the hole, you will be able to see their legs and body, but they will not come out most of the time, they stay inside at the top of the hole to breath air and not to drown. Once you see the Spider at the top inside of the hole, you hold the stick that is Inground and push it towards the spider hole, pushing up the ground, and sort of popping the Spider out of the hole in the whole motion. The Spider is most likely to jump at you and bite you, so you have to keep your distance and be ready to run. Your hunting partner and yourself, take all the stones that you must have ready to throw and squash the spider, if you miss, you can use the broom to stomp and kill it.  Be aware, some Spiders are going to be able to run away, after all, Spiders are smart and agile.

My great grandmother, Maria Pena, told me that her mother died of a Spider bite. So, when the Spiders that I was hunting would run away, I was always scared that they would come after me later on when I was sleeping and bite me. The days the Spiders got away, I had restless nights and nightmares, however, that did not stopped me from killing the Spiders in my yard.

Here is a video, of Spider Hunting in the Dominican Republic. I was just giving it a quick try, I did not had the stick next to the hole, so the Spider did not come out and lived:

http://youtu.be/r001ACyNdt8

www.youtube.com/lalistadeaura

Aura / Lalistadeaura