Local grocery found "large 4+inches, long legged, not fuzzy, brown like cardboard, spider" in the bananas. By time I heard about it, it was long smashed so not sure how accurate the report is, especially size. I searched and found the Golden Silk spider which was reported to be benign in attitude and venom. The other was Brazilian Wandering spider and reported to be "dangerous and very venomous." Any one familiar with these? I asked them to catch and save any more they find. Maybe this isn't a pet I want?

The Golden Silk Spider (AKA Nephila claviapes) is sometimes called "banana spider" because it has an elongated yellow abdomen. It's an orb weaver and not likely to be found living IN a bunch of bananas, so it probably wasn't that one.

Wandering spiders (Phoneutria spp.) do indeed possess potentially dangerous venom and have beem found in bunches of bananas. However, hithikers coming in on produce all the way from the point of origin are rare these days. There's also less dangerous spiders that could easily be mistaken for them, I remember a case of a large spider being found at a Whole Foods that was originally identified as Phoneutria that turned out to be a huntsman spider (genus Heteropoda) which can be fiesty but not dangerous.

Wade

Thanks Wade.

The produce person stated surprise that this guy got thru, if it was one and says this is the first "big one" she has seen in 5 years. I don't know of any really large native spider this far north-on Canadian border- but there must be opportunities for other species large ones to climb aboard along the way. If I get one, will photograph and post.

Once upon a time I've heard it wasn't uncommon to find Avicularia in banana shipments. 20 years ago I knew a guy who who worked at a produce distributor and he said he found all kinds of big spiders in there, and occasionally snakes!

Wade

Jillian befriended the produce guy at a local market and had him on the lookout for spiders. He said he sometimes saw them, and on one occasion he told Jillian a big one came in on some bananas and he tried to catch it for her but it was fast and got away. She also provided the manager of the store with some plastic vials, and he did catch some specimens of local species, but nothing exotic. Unfortunately neither of these people are still working at the store, so Jillian will have to cultivate some new produce department collectors.

When I was teenager, which really was "once upon a time" one of the kids dad was longshoreman and brought home tarantula he found in banana shipment.

Bill. I really don't expect to see anything exotic either but there is the lotto mentality. It also isn't easy to get some people to catch spiders.