Huntsman spider, male.

Description:

Quite large... this fellow was about 6" across!! First two legs it usually kept closer together. VERY FAST! (See notes, below.... ahem. Stupid spider...scared the living daylight out of me....). According to Bugguide.net, this is an adult male, due to the dark brown pattern on the cephalothorax. All guides claim they are harmless. Unless they give you a heart-attack....

Habitat:

Non-native, but not considered an invasive alien. (So it's a polite, well-mannered immigrant.) They eat cockroaches and other undesirables.

Notes:

I am ashamed to admit it. But...... when I went to capture this beast, as it was directly over my breakfast table, I had to box an inch away from it, ready to pop over it. (I always catch-and-release...) Not the least bit scared. UNTIL ... it leapt off the wall. Then I screamed like a little girl. My 8-year old daughter found that highly amusing. As did my husband, in the garden, who could hear me. And did not come to my rescue. Thanks, my loving family. I love you too. And yes, I found - and captured, the spider and evicted it into my garden. (I warned it that if it ever EVER did that to me again it would be immediately sent to spider heaven. He has been warned.)