Urban wildlife has always fascinated me with their ability to adapt but the diversity of creatures that live inside our houses is quite spectacular. In Japan there are a wide variety of insects, isopods and spiders living inside my house. As well as one adorable reptile. Here are some of them:
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| Schlegel's Japanese Gecko (Gekko japonicus) |
Huntsman Spiders are probably the most impressive creature in my house. The first one we saw was massive and about the size of your face. Apparently they can get even bigger and the largest can fill a toilet seat. Most of the ones I have seen since could just fit into my palm. These are ambush hunters and don't spin webs so they move incredibly fast.
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| Huntsman Spider (Heteropoda maxima) |
Jumping spiders are less colossal but just as quick and much more common. These little guys are thriving on the inside and outside of windows in the house catching all of the insects that stray to close.
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| Jumping Spiders (Family Salticidae) |
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| Jumping Spiders (Family Salticidae) |
Cockroaches are a typical creature of Japanese houses. Frankly they don't worry me that much and ants are much more troublesome in terms of getting into things.
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Oriental Cockroach
(Blatta orientalis)
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Oriental Cockroach
(Blatta orientalis)
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Mosquitoes although they don't really live in the house but they do get in every once in a while along with stone flies, crane flies,
Acanthocoris scaber and various moths.
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| Mosquito (Aedes) |
Isopods also called woodlice are frequent in the house and outdoors. These little guys are really harmless and they even roll into a small ball when they get scared. They like moist areas under logs and under rocks.
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Common Pill Woodlouse
(Armadillidium vulgare)
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As well as young
Chinese Red-headed Centipede (Scolopendra subspinipes ssp. mutilans) there are also Greenhouse Centipedes (
Oxidus).
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| Chinese Red-headed Centipede (Scolopendra subspinipes ssp. mutilans) |
There are ants in pretty much every household but this is the first time I have experienced a "Flying Ant Day". Queens and males are born with wings and gather at a high point in the morning before they disperse. The Queens are at least 4 times bigger than the winged males. The winged males are to increase genetic diversity between colonies and take to the air with the queens to mate along the way.
In my case, queens and males alike were swarming on my front sliding doors in the morning. Below them the regular non-winged ants were also quite active. The swarms made large black patches on the door and the blind. Opening the doors they slowly filtered out over the course of an hour. We had experienced smaller groups of them doing this a few days prior so they do build up before it gets quite massive.
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| Queen Ants on a "Flying Ant Day" |
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