Local fighting Spider

During my childhood days, I would join my friends in hunting for spiders inside a mountain that full of high grass and trees that suspected to be a good source of these local spiders. Some of my friends are more daring than others would climb up the wooden post of electric power lines. Spiders found there were believe to be more ferocious.

Philippine fighting spiders are of a variety very similar to the European garden spider .Long-limbed and slandered-bodied are the preferred choice. Spiders with red mark on their backs are called "Pulahan". They are mostly found in Tamarind trees. There are also the black or brown "Tigre-tigre" or "Tiger" with stripes and an almost triangular body shape. The "Mantalan"," Ituman" and the yellow spider found on horse-radish plants. Different fighting styles like fast moving, unpredictable body movements, quick acting venom, aggressiveness and spiritedness are all taken into consideration when choosing spiders
We stabled them in empty matchboxes or in a specially constructed box which usually have separate cells to house several spiders. they are feed with insects but we avoid feeding them before a fight to make them more aggressive
Some petty larceny was sometimes resorted to acquire the necessary stake money. A bill or two missing from a parent's wallet. Occasionally we were found out because of a tattletale schoolmate (usually a girl). Needless to say, a lot of us got to taste the leathery sting of a belt.

Heated arguments from hot heads sometimes occur because some boy felt he was cheated or welsh on a bet. Fistfights were not uncommon and going home with a bruised eye and soiled or torn school uniform resulted in the discovery of our illicit activities and the accompanying consequences. Although it never deteriorated to such tragic outcome as the news stories below:

"2 minors killed over spider-fighting bet"
Over an unpaid 5 peso bet (10 cents) a 15 year old stab to death a 13 year old boy. Upon learning of his son's death, the father sought out his son's killer and hacked him to death with a jungle bolo.


September 20,2010 Liloan town,Northern Cebu,Philippines.

"Man killed, one hurt over spider-fighting"

A spider fight in a local town ended in tragedy with one man killed and another wounded after an argument over a disputed bet. The suspect armed with a hand gun fired point blank at the head of his opponent killing him instantly and wounded another as he fled the scene of the crime.
Spider fighting is now generally discouraged since it affects the educational performance of children. It is also thought to be indirectly responsible for crop damage since spiders are useful in controlling insect pest population. Ordinance against the sport are now in effect in some cities where it is considered as a form of illegal gambling.