Blog #11--Ode to Arachnia

Blog #11 --Ode to Arachnia, by Jack Tuttle http://dreamtime3.wix.com/jacktuttlebook

It happened a year ago, but it won’t be forgotten anytime soon. At that time, I began a “relationship” with a ground spider residing in our sump pump room. It had a profound effect on my outlook on life, and it provided a good example of the myriad ways various species adapt to their environment and survive difficult conditions.

The winter of 2013-14 was one of the coldest on record for our part of the country. Temperatures around the world fluctuate in cyclic patterns, and it was our turn to get hit with the cold stuff. It made for an extremely monotonous and lengthy winter, sapping our strength and inducing a semi-hibernation for many. Seasonal Affective Disorder was rampant among the populous.

Our sump pump is in a small, narrow room under our front porch. The room is not connected to the forced-air heating in the rest of the house, so it gets nearly as cold as the outside. It has a door that connects to our family room, which we keep closed in winter but leave open a sliver to allow our cats access the rest of the year.

We had seen the same small cobwebs at the base of each side of the door for each of the many years we’ve lived in the house. We haven't cleaned them out because the spiders residing there helped keep other insects from entering our family room. But we paid no attention to the spiders that lived there.

That is, until last winter; I believe it was around Thanksgiving. I happened to notice a spider resting in one of the nests. I didn’t even know for sure the spider was alive until I stepped too close and scared it into retreating to the back of the nest. It was already extremely cold in the room, but it was to get worse before it got better.

Our cats often police the room for insects, and they have scared off most of them. And usually, insects either die out or go into suspended animation until winter passes. But not this spider. No insect was going to become trapped by the small web attached to the door frame. However, ground spiders are known to leave their nests to hunt.

I was so impressed by a spider trying to survive near-freezing conditions in 24-hour-a-day darkness, I gave her a name. Spiders are part of a group of related species known as Arachnids, so I called her Arachnia. This was also a tribute to a couple of Star Trek: Voyager television shows which used the name in a holodeck re-creation.

Arachnia touched my heart because she (her behavior suggested she might be an indirect female) had a strong need to survive horrible conditions. I began checking on her daily. With time, she became accustomed to me and stopped retreating upon my entry to her territory. She survived until at least May of this year.

I don’t know how her story ended, assuming she didn’t move to a different area. She may not have had anything to eat in all that time, which would likely mean she also couldn’t reproduce her genes, her primary purpose in life. In an act of desperation, I saw her walk to the other door frame to confront the ground spider residing there. It was eat or be eaten, but I don’t know which one won since they were taking so long to do battle.

I haven't seen Arachnia since that incident. Another ground spider took over the nest for awhile, but his behavior was more direct and aggressive, which may mean he was a male. He spent much of his time hunting, coming back to the nest only periodically. Even he is gone now, with winter upon us and no food available.

Arachnia made me appreciate how tough survival can be for many of us and how motivated most of us are to find survival methods that work against difficult odds. As she proved to me, we can do amazing things if we need to badly enough. Of course, she also reminded that there are no guarantees in life. Some survive long enough to reproduce themselves, and some don’t.

Arachnia never spoke or had any positive interactions with me. And she may have failed at her primary reproductive task. But she was great at the patience and perseverance necessary to survive extreme conditions. She touched my heart and set a good example for all of us to emulate. I miss her.

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