Welp, it’s October, and as the weather gets colder in the Northern hemisphere, Halloween draws closer. In honor of spooky season, what are some organisms with a spooky color scheme, spooky name, or spooky behavior?

Ghost Spiders, Goblin Spiders, Pirate Spiders, Ogre Faced Spiders

Xylaria polymorpha, dead man’s fingers Clathrus archeri, devil’s fingers

Heliophanus lineiventris jumping spiders have white markings on their legs and body that make it look like they’re wearing a skeleton suit on their exoskeleton: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/11145686 Apparently in some regions of the USA mantids are colloquially known as devil’s horses. …

Devil’s urn (also called witches cauldron, and I once saw it releasing its spores and it did look like a simmering witch’s cauldron) https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/8966858 Dead man’s fingers https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/138279882 Witch’s butter. Warlock’s butter, black witc…

When I was a kid rubber and plastic spiders were a lot less accurate. Most had either 3 body parts or had the legs coming out of the abdomen. They are a lot better now.

I think they’re beautiful but one could consider bladderworts really creepy. Imagine being a daphnid swimming around seeing chandelier after chandelier of clear chambers containing your acquaintances slowly melting away, much less if you were sucked into one.

Seeing these plastic “lifers” after halloween, where kids drop some of them while trick-or-treating or they fall off decorations that are put away is both frightening since they’re unexpected and disappointing that they aren’t real organisms.

I will say it’s pretty damn creepy when you’re on the coast here, if you leave a small glass of tap water sitting for a few days you’ll begin to see tiny wormslike creatures growing in it, wait a week and it looks like something from X-Files. I would have uploaded an observation for this phenomenon…

Spooky organisms

Nature Talk

natemarchessault October 24, 2022, 3:13pm 25

That first photo is so creepy! I’m usually not bothered by anything but any time I see that species of harvestman I get the heebie jeebies bigtime.

Topic		Replies	Views
Seriously Spooky Species Nature Talk fun	70	1018	January 11, 2025
Most Tragic, Gory, or visually Edward Gorey Lifestory (now with photos: fair warning) Nature Talk	40	1663	December 29, 2022
Weird and Strange Animal Myths Nature Talk	77	4497	February 23, 2020
What is the most interesting organism that you have seen in your local area? Nature Talk	52	2594	July 26, 2021
Mysterious organisms that keep you up at night Nature Talk	34	1134	February 25, 2023

Spooky organisms

Related topics