SPIDER FIGHTING

The sport of spider fighting occurs in different forms in several

 areas of the world. Among them are the Philippines, Japan,

and Singapore. 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 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: pahibag

sang damang; Cebuano: paaway kaka or sabong sa kaka)

is staged between female orb-weavers from the genus

Araneus. 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, and

most commonly use the species Thiania bhamoensis,

although another species of that genus may sometimes

be used. Like cock fighting, spider fighting is a sport that

 usually involves betting and events occur frequently.

Catching and Care

The spiders are usually caught in trees and bushes

in the early morning or during dusk when the spiders

 come out to spin webs. Some spiders are even caught

along power lines. These are believed to be more

aggressive and much tougher fighters since spiders

that live in areas exposed to predators fight better

 than those that live in more protected areas.

Spiders suitable for spider fighting are orb-weavers from the genus Araneus.

 Only the spiders coming from this genus are called damang or kaka.

They are carefully chosen since catching the wrong spider can result in

being bitten and envenomated. Spiders which do not resemble the typical

Araneus morphology are avoided. Spiders having shiny or waxy abdomens,

spiders with green or loud coloration, and iridescent spiders are also

regarded as dangerous and are not caught.

Spiders with slender bodies and long legs are also favored as better fighters.

 Slim, black spiders from guava or tamarind trees are also prized as fighters.

Fighting

Most spider fights are done with a single piece of dried

coconut leaf midrib (usually taken from a broom made

from such midribs; Cebuano: "Silhig tukog", Tagalog:

"Walis tingting") or bamboo. 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. In Cudangdang village in EB Magalona

town, spiders were sold from P20 to P100 per box,

and most buyers come from Bacolod City and Silay City.

 In the spider derby, the combatant that falls three

times from a wooden stick loses; one that wraps its

 opponent in silk is declared the champion. 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 "kuyme" (referee) similar to

 cockfighting.