Authored by Rodney Southern in Nature and Wildlife
Published on 10-01-2009
There are all manner of dangerous animals found on the great continent of Australia. You can find fierce snakes, brown snakes, jellyfish, sharks and even the world famous salt water crocodile. Even the little creatures there such as spiders can be quite deadly such as the red back spider and funnel webs. The most famous deadly spider of all, however, is found primarily in the city of Sydney. It is called the Sydney funnel-web spider, and it is as feared as most any of the others. How can a spider reach such legendary status? Lets take a look.
One thing that gives the Sydney funnel-web spider such a reputation is because they are not like your normal spider. The average spider will run and hide at the first sight of a human being. The Sydney funnel-web stands their ground and even has been known to go on the offensive. The Sydney funnel-web is easily the most aggressive spider in Australia, and it might be the most aggressive in the world. This becomes a problem because the Sydney funnel-web will sometimes enter homes looking for shelter. When a child happens upon one, they are not lucky enough as a rule to have the spider scurry away before the child wants to play with it. This leads to spider bites of a very serious nature. This leads us to the next reason they are so feared. The Sydney funnel-web spider has a venom that is capable of killing a full grown healthy man.
A bite with a child is even more serious, and the same goes for the elderly. There is an antivenom that has been developed to significantly reduce the danger of a bite, but you still are facing a medical emergency. Without the anti- venom, you certainly could die.
The Sydney funnel-web is also famous for it’s aggressive posturing. When you come near it, it will rear up on it’s back legs like some spider from a horror movie. This position will readily show the two large fangs that it packs, and if you come near it will thrust downward to bite. These fangs can penetrate many fabrics and most shoes. This makes the equipment of the Sydney funnel-web very dangerous.
While many species of spiders have a more deadly female, the male is the one to worry about with Sydney funnel webs. This is somewhat due to the fact that the female is rarely encountered and also due to the fact that the toxin in the male is particularly harmful to humans. The female stays in the burrow most of the time, so people rarely even see her. The male is out looking for a spider to mate with, and this can lead to human interaction. The more spiders come into contact with people, the more bites that will come about.
If you are ever bitten by a Sydney funnel-web spider, or even suspect that you might have been, you need to get to the doctor immediately. This is a serious toxic bite, and can be very dangerous. Some are even fatal if they are left untreated.
