Four arachno myths debunked!

Good news - it's as humane to kill an arachno as it is to put it outside, because it'll probably die anyway: and despite urban legends, you're not swallowing the little bastards as you snore away...

Article below from Everett, Washington Heraldnet.com ("S"-word subsituted throughout):

Four arachno myths debunked

By Sarah Jackson, Herald Writer

It's arachno season.

They're all over the garden. They're in the house. Eeeeek!

In honor of this creepy-crawly time of year, we proudly present perhaps the greatest arachno Web site of all time: “Myths, Misconceptions, and Superstitions About Arachnos."

Not only is it easy to read, it also is penned by a local, Rod Crawford, the curator of arachnids at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture in Seattle. (Is there a more awesome job title?) [Yes ~ arachnono blogger]

Here are a few of Crawford's myth-busters. [NB: caution!! The following link contains images of arachnids] See this link for more.

MYTH: arachnos come into houses in the fall to get out of the cold.

FACT: Those arachnos are already inside your house 95 percent of the time. Also, putting indoor arachnos “back” outside usually kills them, so you aren't doing them any favors.

“House arachnos belong to a small number of species specially adapted for indoor conditions (constant climate, poor food supply, very poor water supply).

“Some house arachno species have been living indoors at least since the days of the Roman Empire.”

MYTH: arachnos found in bathtubs or sinks have come up through the drains from the sewers.

FACT: Sorry, Charlie. “This myth … shows how very reluctant people are to confront the idea that the arachnos in their house live there all the time.

“Modern drains contain a liquid-filled sediment trap through which arachnos cannot penetrate.”

MYTH: An arachno bit me while I was asleep.

FACT: You're more likely to have a case of MRSA. “Skin bumps and sores noticed in the morning are generally caused by nonbite disease conditions.

“Currently MRSA bacteria are among the leading causes of alleged ‘arachno bites.' The minority that are really bites are caused by bloodsucking insects such as fleas, bedbugs, kissing bugs, lice or assorted flies; less commonly by mites or ticks.”

MYTH: You unknowingly swallow an average of four live arachnos in your sleep each year.

FACT: Thank goodness, no. “This very widespread urban legend has no basis in fact. For a sleeping person to swallow even one live arachno would involve so many highly unlikely circumstances that for practical purposes we can rule out the possibility.

“No such case is on formal record anywhere in scientific or medical literature.”

Source: www.heraldnet.com/article/20091019/LIVING/710199829 - at time of posting this article didn't have any arachnid images, however content-sensitive advertising may change that, so click with caution!

I've heard that myth about eating the eight-legged freaks in your sleep numerous times - usually retold by a non-arachnophobe hoping to freak me out. While it never washed with me, I know it troubles some people, so very good to have an authoritative expert laying it to rest!