Dr. Eleanor Spicer Rice and Dr. Christopher M. Buddle—a North Carolina writer who holds a PhD in entomology and the author of “Dr. Eleanor’s Book of Common Ants” series, and an arachnologist who’s dean of students and associate professor in the Department of Natural Resource Science at McGill University, respectively—explain how a tweet from Buddle to Spicer Rice set in motion the collaboration that yielded the book they co-wrote, “Dr. Eleanor’s Book of Common Spiders.” 
Buddle responds to a question about whether Spicer Rice’s previous books constitute a “brand,” noting that her books do promise accessible, appealing descriptions of species. He also addresses the spectrum of folks ranging from those who feel a bit squeamish about spiders to those experiencing all-out arachnaphobia, and the array of causal factors for those reactions. Spicer Rose notes that, even 
though she got a Master’s degree and PhD in entomology—and thought nothing of allowing ants to roam in her hair–she herself had contended a fear of spiders…until working on this book. Buddle and Spicer Rice fielded numerous calls from listeners with all kinds of spider questions and questions, including about recluse spiders (Spicer Rice announced that anyone unsure about the identity of one can tweet a photo to @recluseornot and an entologist will respond, part of a project collecting information about recluse spiders), tarantulas, ceiling spiders, black widows (including some notable myth busting), fishing spiders, and others. [photo credits: Raymond Goodman, Yannick Michaud, Matt Bertone, Joe Lapp]
COMEDY CORNER: To provide additional time for our spider conversation, we decided to forgo the comedy piece today.
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: The Who’s “Boris The Spider”
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