How to Make a Decoy for Spiders Using Spanish Canes

Spanish canes (Arundo donax) are a favorite for making all sorts of items, including bows and arrows, javelins, peashooters, Popeye's pipes and blowers for low fires. By following these steps, you can recreate the high-pitched sound of an attacking mosquito or a fly in a panic. And they can even be used to make clever decoys for pesky spiders... and people, as you'll discover here.The canes are better when they're green–the dry ones require more know-how and patience.

Steps

1. 

   The canes end in a rolled tight, long and pointed flexible tip that looks like a toy whip.
   Look around in your neighborhood to find Spanish cane. It's also known as giant cane, giant reed, carrizo, arundo and wild cane.^[1] A native to eastern and southeastern Asia, it can also be found in California, the Western Pacific, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean.
2. 

   This is the tip of a cane.
   Locate the extreme tip of the cane.
3. 

   Same cane but the tip has been pulled off.
   Pull off the tip. Take care to hold the tip firmly when doing this and to avoid cutting yourself with the sharp edge of the cane leaves.
4. 

   Unroll the outer leaf of the tip to gain access to the inner ones.
   Unroll the outer leaf of the tip to gain access to the inner ones.
5. 

   Now you can pull them out
   Pull out the inner leaves.
6. 

   Smooth out the outer leaf. This will be the decoy.
   Smooth out the outer leaf. This will be the decoy. Blow hard. You'll hear that it produces the high-pitched sound of an attacking mosquito or that of a fly in a panic.
7. 
   Go to a spider's hole or a cobweb. Try to attract the attention of the eight-legged dweller... If you're lucky, a spider will come rushing forth to investigate the apparent caught fly or mosquito!
   • If you don't succeed with the spider, play kindhearted tricks on friends and family to cause them to think there's a mosquito in the room. Or, use the sound as a unique ringtone.

Warnings

• When cutting the cane, take care to avoid cutting yourself on either the cane or the cutting implement.
• Check for insects before handling freshly cut plant material, to avoid being unwittingly stung.

Things You'll Need

• Spanish cane
• Cutting implement