Eeek!: The Smithsonian Store offers this acrylic, Glow-in-the-Dark computer mouse with a real spider for $28. Arachnophobic? Try their beetle version (http://goo.gl/sludF) for half the price.
Pros: USB compatible, creeps out co-workers, purple
Cons: Not wireless, creeps out co-workers, purple
H/T HuffPo
madame scientist's not-so-mad musings 
Now that is my kind of mouse!!
Poor Spidey. This is not ecologically sound. Use fake spiders and beetles.
Haha, I might get it if wireless.
I hope the spider expired of natural causes 🙂
Don Denesiuk , I was intrigued that this was from the Smithsonian. I wonder if they will get some pushback on this.
Gregory Esau , I now know what to get you for your birthday 🙂
Cool.
Surfing the web with a spider:)
Feisal Kamil , I wouldn’t be surprised if there are objects with real animals in them. This reminds me of insects preserved in amber.
hello ! how do u do ? n shall we became a 4ever frnd mam
I am not too much arachnophobic, but I hate killing and torturing animals for this kind of “fun”
I seriously doubt he died naturaly. More like they put it there and let it die slowly. Hopefuly not:)
if u don’t mind mam
Markéta Gajdošová , that’s why I’m surprised this is from the Smithsonian.
Rajini Rao Oh, now I checked website. Did not know what does it mean. In that case it may be dead on old age before. Lets have at least some faight in humanity:))
How about offering different selections, such as a buttefly mouse, a lady bug mouse, or just being as close as possible… A mouse mouse? 😉
Preston McDonald I am not crazy vegan, so I do not mind killing animals in generaly, but killing anything just for nice interier decor seems sick. Like those butterflies “collectors” – brrrrrr. But so many people killing spiders just because they are annoying for them. But this one is really beatiful.
Feisal Kamil I do. Mostly because I found dead insect more disguasting than alive. I can not kill even mosquito without troubles:)
Feisal Kamil Unfortunatly it is! So much. And I live in centre of “big” city (biggest in Czech, but small in compare with others:D). But near park. SO MANY mosquitos, moths, small annoying flies. I am getting used to it slowly 🙂 But still trying to avoid killing as much as possible. But it is some kind of personal problem. It is not very normal:)
Markéta Gajdošová , not that far from “normal”. There is a sect in India called Jainism and they actively avoid killing even insects. Strict observers wear a mask over their mouth to avoid accidentally eating an insect!
Gnotic Pasta , how about a black widow spider? Or preying mantis 🙂
Next on the Smithsonian gift shop list: A Cadaver encased in acrylic as coffee table..:D 😀
Let’s not look at it as “killing” but rather “preserving” for science or some noble cause. The insects would die anyway if somebody steps on them by mistake. Preserve and sell them, use the money to help the endangered species cause. Provided the insects are of useless or dangerous type.
There are some people I would like to encase in acrylic and on my desk top, yes NEY MELLO 😀
And it glows in the dark!
Yikes!
I’m not keen, I have to admit.
I have a problem with killing animals, any of them, just for our entertainment. It’ll be ok if it were fake.
Tom Lee has a valid point, above, Zaid El-Hoiydi . Although a fake spider would look just as good/creepy and have the same impact.
Just what I need to cure a certain friend of mine of his internet addiction
Animals, insects, rare or not, alive or not, are being exported because there is a demand for them and this kind of gadget creates a market which creates the demand which causes the poaching.
Feisal Kamil A bee whisperer?! How cute. A bee is worth reviving..tarantula, may be not!
Ooh, wonder what Chad Haney thinks of this? Huntsman Spider in Baltic Amber Imaged Using Phase Contrast X-Ray Tomography
Interesting video. It must be a specimen scanner to do 3.8µm.
As far as the mouse is concerned, it’ too gimmicky, i.e., I doubt it has the features I need, like hyper-scroll.
Chad Haney , definitely a gimmick 🙂 I thought the amber CT scan was really good..especially the commentary on the YouTube site.
is the spider poisonous?
Thanks, but that was not my Q
It has 8 legs…I thought insects have 6 according to my observations with cockroaches…
Excellent opportunity for Zoology 101 😀 Sudhanshu Pathania ! Spiders are not insects: as you note, insects have six legs and spiders have eight. That’s one reason why spiders are classified as Arachnids, along with scorpions, ticks and mites.
means octopus with 8 legs is one of them too….very confusing…
Sudhanshu Pathania , hence my careful use of the phrase, “That’s one reason..” 🙂
Classification is not based on number of legs alone, of course. An octopus is a cephalopod, a soft invertebrate with no external shell. Let me see if I can find an easy phylogenetic tree/classification.
Yogesh Joshi That spider is more than likely not poisonous however, there is a good chance that it is venomous 😉 The species in this product vary, so you’ll never know if you’ve got a venomous one or not until you receive it and do some research. Also, the color is not only purple. It actually cycles through several colors of LED lights.
Also, when spiders die, their legs curl up because they use internal pressure (no muscles) to extend them. You be the judge on wether these were encased dead or alive 😉
Brodie Meche , people do not appreciate the distinction between venomous and poisonous..but I do, so thank you for that clarification 🙂
As for the info on spider legs..yikes. How do they respond to anesthetics? Would the legs stay extended long enough for the “embalming”. (Who am I kidding..a commercial producer would not “waste” expensive anesthetic on these things).
Rajini Rao you put them in a refrigerator, I would guess. It works for reptiles.
Good point..I’ve heard of spiders being chilled for photography.
AHHH FROZEN! That is a good point! I would assume that anesthetics would cause the leg curling…maybe we should try it!
I’m guessing they would be dropped on to dry ice for instant chilling/killing. It works on small animals too.
It is so beautiful… i’d be staring at my spider all day!
John Ryce , but you could navigate the web so much faster!
I am once again acquiring great knowledge as it relates to the insect world BUT my phobic side of me says….KILL THEM!!!!
But…it’s an amazing, awesome arachnid!
(I will find an insect that you will like, Mary Owens !)
Lady bugs I do not kill. But I will put a death sentence on spiders and these damn (yes I swore) bugs that are suddenly infesting parts of Boise & the scientist don’t know what they are & how to effectively kill them!!! I look forward to what you will find Rajini Rao :-).
That is a cool mouse .. I am in for one!
Great link, thanks Feisal Kamil ..what a diversity and beauty in spiders! I don’t think the coloring matches, though. The link says that the cephalothorax of the Black and Yellow Garden spider is mostly white ..this one looks quite a bit darker. At least it’s not venomous 🙂
TT^TT poor spider
oh +Preston McDonald awesome fracking use. that has become my new curse word 🙂 i like coming up with/ copying new substitutions.
but yes, that was prolly what happened. still, im just not fond of putting my hand on top of a dead animal…
anybody else here absolutely enamored with spiders? i looove them. wish i had a tarantula
(♋ ︵♋) ♥♥♥
Feisal Kamil, I was barely about to completely view the link without cringing! Margaret Ross, I wished I could share in your enthusiasm! I’ll stick to pretty butterflies, fireflies and worms (I like worms).
Spiders are so beautiful up close and personal! Mary Owens , I found a perfectly charming little fellow to sway you..he is only 3 mm long and is so handsome. Will post tomorrow!
I don’t know, Rajini Rao… Arachnophobia is high in me EXCEPT when I am hiking strangely enough. I don’t like them indoors!
Yes, they rock..,behind a rock, beside a rock, but if they are in the house, they will be under a rock…smashed!!! I can deal with them outdoors!!! Don’t I get ANY sympathy from ANYONE??? .
How about Spiderman, Mary Owens ? He rocks. 🙂
Spiderman is different…he’s cute with two eyes, not six!
Good morning Feisal Kamil & I did like the clown spider’s appearance. Black Widow spiders are attractive as well provided we do not co-mingle!
Good Monday, Feisal Kamil ! Where is the clown spider? A recent post?
Oh, yeah, the crown spider!!! As long as I concentrated on the water drop crown & not it’s many eyes, I was okay. It was an attractive photo, Feisal Kamil.
Thanks! He was a handsome fellow indeed 🙂
LOL..it could dress up as a clown Feisal Kamil? :-).
Don’t torture me to review the post again!!! I’ll take your word on it that Mr. Crown spider has two eyes not six!!!
He was a jumping spider..salticidae. They have eight eyes, see here http://goo.gl/FaaTq
OMG!!!!!!!! Rajini Rao!!!!!!!
You no like, Mary Owens ?
Seriously, if that creeps you out, I’ll steer you clear of them.
Now that I have regained my sanity after reviewing the huge eyes of my nightmare tonight thanks to you Rajini Rao, I say touché!
And…no I did not like!!! I scared my cat & now Faith is traumatized!!!
LOL! We must restore Faith to good humor.
Yes you MUST Rajini Rao ;-). Dang, those eyes were HUGE!!!! Faith will be okay but I think I will be seeing spider eyes in my dreams tonight! 🙂
I just saw this in my stream and it made me smile: https://plus.google.com/u/0/100376442955882436367/posts/Mb944X9N8yU
Is it scary, Rajini Rao???
Not at all! It is a tiny, cute snail perched on a tiny cute mushroom reaching towards a big splash of water.
Okay, that’s more like it! Very sweet posting! Thanks Rajini Rao!
I bet some restaurant would call that an appetizer.
The spider or the snail, Chad Haney ?
The little snail on the little mushroom.
It’s too little for even a fancy french hors d’oeuvre!
Leave the snail alone!!! Kill the spiders!!! .
Rajini Rao not in Chicago. I bet NY, SF, and LA too.
Got to go, escargot! Eek.
I know of a place which served worms… but it was fancy smanchy.
LOL!
mouse is super
lol super……..
Cooolll… Spider Mouse..
Poor spider !
amar chi……
wow nice……….