Spider fighting or spider derby is a sport involving

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

s that occurs in different forms in several areas of the world. Among them are the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, Japan,

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

and

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. The fights that occur in the Philippines and in Japan are staged between females of various species of web weavers. Female spiders will kill a rival if the loser does not quickly flee or receive the aid of a human handler. The contests that are staged in Singapore and Malaysia are fights between male jumping spiders. The males fight only for dominance, and ordinarily the loser will flee, though sometimes they will lose a leg in the fight. In the Philippines, spider fighting ( Hiligaynon: ; Cebuano: ) is staged between female orb-weavers from the genus ''

Neoscona ''Neoscona'', known as spotted orb-weavers and barn spiders, is a genus of orb-weaver spiders (Araneidae) first described by Eugène Simon in 1895 to separate these from other araneids in the now obsolete genus '' Epeira''. The name ''Neoscona'' ...

''. In Japan, the contests occur at an annual festival and use females of the genus ''Argiope''. In Japanese these contests are called ''Kumo Gassen'' (spider battles). In Singapore, they use males of the genus '' Thiania -'' most commonly the species '' Thiania bhamoensis -'' although another species of that genus may sometimes be used. Like cockfighting, spider fighting is a sport that usually involves betting and events occur frequently. In Singapore, they are known as "fighting spiders" in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, () in

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

and

Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding ar ...

, and in Malay.

Philippines

Spider fighting or spider wrestling ( Hiligaynon: ; Cebuano: ; Mindanao Cebuano: ) is a popular

blood sport A blood sport or bloodsport is a category of sport or entertainment that involves bloodshed. Common examples of the former include combat sports such as cockfighting and dog fighting, and some forms of hunting and fishing. Activities char ...

among

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descri ...

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

children, especially in the Bisaya region. The game begins by placing two

s at opposite ends of a stick. The spiders are then prodded to move along the length of the stick until they encounter each other and fight.

Catching

Spiders suitable for spider fighting are almost always adult female orb-weavers from the genus ''

''. Only the spiders coming from this genus are called ''damang'' or ''kaka'' (or in English as "derby spiders" or "fighting spiders"). The most commonly utilized species is '' Neoscona punctigera'', but other species used include: '' Neoscona aldinei'', '' Neoscona ampoyae'', '' Neoscona facundoi'', '' Neoscona lipana'', '' Neoscona marauoyi'', '' Neoscona nautica'', '' Neoscona rumpfi'', '' Neoscona shereeae'', '' Neoscona theisi'', and '' Neoscona vigilans''. The spiders are usually caught in trees and bushes in the early morning or during dusk when the spiders come out to spin webs. After capture or in-between fights, the spiders are stabled in used matchboxes. These matchboxes usually have separate cells to house several spiders. The cells are normally made from discarded cardboard or a single blade of coconut leaf bent several times inside the matchbox. Some trainers assemble a "''langsaranan''" where the spider is released to a plant enclosed by a net or a plastic bottle with tiny holes.

Fighting

Most spider fights are done with a single piece of dried coconut leaf midrib (usually taken from a

broom A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...

made from such

midrib This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

s; Cebuano: , Tagalog: ) or

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

. Spiders are placed at both ends and encouraged to move toward each other and fight. The sticks are thin enough to ensure that the spiders have no choice but to meet. It is held by one child who ensures that the spiders do not escape by alternately switching grip from one end to the other. How a fight ends is agreed upon beforehand. Fights to the death will end with one spider being bitten, paralyzed, and swiftly wrapped in silk. Non-lethal matches end when one spider falls from the stick (once or several times, depending on the agreement). Occasionally, the child holding the stick may need to quickly intervene in a non-lethal fight to prevent the winning spider from eating the losing spider. More formal fights, called "''kaka'' derbies" are held in an arena made of two poles connected by a tight string. Underneath is a padding (usually polystyrene foam) to ensure that the spiders are not injured in case they fall down. A fight that includes large sums of money normally has a referee similar to

cockfight A cockfight is a blood sport, held in a ring called a cockpit. The history of raising fowl for fighting goes back 6,000 years. The first documented use of the ''word'' gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or ent ...

ing.

Legal issues

The practice is now generally discouraged since it affects the educational performance of school children. Top fighters can fetch up to 100 pesos (

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

2), making the sport lucrative for children. They could spend so much time hunting and training spiders that lessons and homework are neglected. Adults also play the sport but in a way similar to

cockfighting A cockfight is a blood sport, held in a ring called a cockpit. The history of raising fowl for fighting goes back 6,000 years. The first documented use of the ''word'' gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or ente ...

. Derbies are also held and bets could go as high as 50,000

pesos The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the same sign, "$", as many currencies named "dollar" ...

(about US$1,000). The cheaper maintenance cost of raising spiders compared to raising fighting cocks caused some players to switch to spider fighting. Ordinances against the sport are now in effect in some cities. In the

Negros Occidental Negros Occidental ( hil, Nakatungdang Negros; tl, Kanlurang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Occidental, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region. ...

province, spider derbies are treated as a threat to public morals. The Bacolod police provincial director issued an order warning residents of participating in a form of

illegal gambling Gaming law is the set of rules and regulations that apply to the gaming or gambling industry. Gaming law is not a branch of law in the traditional sense but rather is a collection of several areas of law that include criminal law, regulatory law, ...

. The police also say that spider fighting in itself is not illegal as a pastime, but it will be considered illegal once people place bets on the fights.

Japan

An annual spider fighting contest called '' Kumo Gassen'' is held in

Kajiki, Kagoshima was a town located in Aira District, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is located north of the city of Kagoshima. Kajiki is located on the northern part of the bay. Kagoshima Airport is to the north. As of 2003, the town had an estimated populatio ...

, Japan. The spiders used in this contest belong to the genus ''Argiope''. This form of spider fighting is said to have been around as far back as the 16th century. It is done in a similar manner to Philippine spider-fights. One spider, designated as the "Kamae" is placed on the end of a stick, while another spider called the "Shikake" is placed on the other end. The spiders will then fight each other in the middle. The contest is a

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

, with the last two victorious spiders fighting each other in the finale.

Singapore and Malaysia

Spiders used in spider derbies in

and

come from the species '' Thiania bhamoensis'' (also called "Fighting Spider"), a

jumping spider Jumping spiders are a group of spiders that constitute the family Salticidae. As of 2019, this family contained over 600 described genera and over 6,000 described species, making it the largest family of spiders at 13% of all species. Jumping spi ...

. The practice has been the subject of a memoir entitled ''Spider Boys,'' and a popular television series in Singapore called ''Fighting Spiders.'' Capturing, admiring, nurturing, and staging fights among these spiders is a popular activity among many young people. In some instances, the practice had a relatively large financial impact on those young people who participate in these practices both because of the sale value of a strong contender and also because of the bets made on their fights. Mainly in the 60s, 70s.

United States

In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, spider-fighting is also prevalent in prisons in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, where inmates catch them and keep them in boxes as pets. In 2002, a fight between three inmates over the theft of a pet spider resulted in life-threatening skull injuries to one inmate and additional charges to the other two.

Gallery

Image:Spider fight 1.jpg, Two fighting spiders of approximately equal size and weight are placed at opposite ends of a

skewer A skewer is a thin metal or wood stick used to hold pieces of food together. The word may sometimes be used as a metonym, to refer to the entire food item served on a skewer, as in "chicken skewers". Skewers are used while grilling or roasting ...

Image:Spider fight 2.jpg, ''Top frame:'' Both spiders size each other up; ''Bottom frame:'' The spiders grapple; at this point, one of the spiders may have already delivered a paralyzing

bite Biting is a common zoological behavior involving the active, rapid closing of the jaw around an object. This behavior is found in toothed animals such as mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish, but can also exist in arthropods. Myocytic co ...

to its opponent's body Image:Spider fight 3.jpg, The victor begins to wrap its victim in

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the ...

Spinnerets A spinneret is a silk-spinning organ of a spider or the larva of an insect. Some adult insects also have spinnerets, such as those borne on the forelegs of Embioptera. Spinnerets are usually on the underside of a spider's opisthosoma, and are ...

are visible Image:Spider fight 4.jpg, ''Top frame'': The victor may be delivering another bite to its wrapped opponent; ''Bottom frame'': The victor climbs up its dragline, dragging the wrapped victim behind using one of its hind legs

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spider Fighting Philippine games Baiting (blood sport) Spiders in culture Animal combat organized by humans