My grandson found two of these spiders in my garage and wanted to pick them up. Since I didn't know what kind of spiders they where. I didn't let him pick them up.
Does any body know what kind of spiders they are? Should I have let him pick them up?
This appears to be a grass/funnel web spider (family Agelenidae) in the genus Agelenopsis - see http://tinyurl.com/2fuwo2t for an example. Although not dangerous to humans, large specimens can deliver a painful bite if mishandled, so I would advise against a small child picking one up. When I was about four years old, I picked up what I thought was a cute little spider, and it gave me such a painful bite as to put me off spiders for quite some time!
So these spiders are not poison? Does Montana have any poison spiders?
With the exception of one small family (the Uloboridae), all spiders have venom glands. However, only a very few species have the combination of potent venom and fangs long enough to penetrate human skin that would make them a hazard to human health. The only truly dangerous spiders in Montana are the black widow spiders (Latrodectus sp.), but one member of the family Agelenidae known as the hobo spider (Tegenaria agrestis) has been implicated in causing bite wounds that are very slow to heal. However, truly validated medical evidence in support of this appears scanty at best, and the spider itself is quite difficult to identify with certainty. For more information, see http://tinyurl.com/cmphed
