Amazing spiders, man: Singapore family finds tarantulas in home

Amazing spiders, man: Singapore family finds tarantulas in home

A woman found two hairy visitors sharing her home that was neither her dog nor husband. 

Wai Wai Tee last night shared pictures of the two palm-sized tarantulas that she found in her home to find out if others have had the same rare encounter. The pictures showed one spider that was panic-rinsed down a drain and another one that was lucky to remain alive and was released at Fort Canning Park.

“Last year, we encountered these 2 tarantulas in the house. The first one was found in the shower and out of fear, it was flushed down the hole immediately. We found the second one the next morning in the master room. We caught it and released it in Fort Canning Park the same day,” she wrote yesterday, noting in the comments that she lived in central Singapore. 

Tee said she initially freaked out when seeing the spider, but later felt that they were “not as scary/creepy as what the movies portrayed them to be.” 

She even brought one of the spiders out to lunch before releasing it.

“In fact, we brought it out with us for lunch (in a box) before releasing it. After the encounter, I understood why some ppl kept them as pets,” she wrote in a comment, adding: “[I]t was indeed super scary for us!!! After doing much research, the second encounter wasn’t scary anymore we enjoyed the experience.”

She said they had no idea how the tarantulas got into their home when they were found last year. 

There is at least one giant tarantula species native to the city-state called Singapore blue, which can grow over 20 centimeters across. People reading Tee’s post didn’t think that it was either of those she encountered.

Such spiders are not a common sight and it is illegal to keep or import them under the Wild Animals and Birds Act, which is punishable by fines of up to S$1,000 per animal.

This article, Amazing spiders, man: Singapore family finds tarantulas in home, originally appeared on Coconuts, Asia's leading alternative media company.