‘Hercules’ is deadly: mega-venomous record spider discovered in Australia

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A giant male Sydney funnel-web spider has been discovered north of Sydney. The dreaded Sydney Funnel-webs, as they are called in their homeland, are one of the most venomous spider species in the world and can kill a human in less than an hour. The specimen, named Hercules, is 7.9 centimeters long from leg tip to leg tip, surpassing the previous record holder Colossus, the Australian ‘Guardian’ reported on Friday, citing the Australian Reptile Park.

Colossus was captured in 2018 and was a millimeter smaller. Both animals were handed over to the reptile park north of Sydney. Normally, the infamous eight-legged creatures are only between one and five centimeters in size, with the females clearly towering over the males. The largest female discovered so far, called Megaspider, measures only slightly more: eight centimeters.

Poison as an antidote

The park is the only place in Australia where the males are milked for their venom to produce a so-called antidote. Reason: The males are five to six times more venomous than the females – and their venom is particularly suited to producing a life-saving antidote.

“We are used to quite large funnel webs being donated to the park, but receiving such a large male funnel web spider is like hitting the jackpot,” said spider expert Emma Teni. The specimen’s venom production is expected to be enormous and “incredibly valuable” to the park’s antivenom program.

There are 36 species of funnel web spiders. The male of the Sydney species (Atrax robustus), found within 100 miles of the Australian metropolis, is the most dangerous – and has been entered into the Guinness Book of Records along with the Brazilian wandering spider as the most venomous spider in the world. the world. There have been no deaths from animal bites in Australia since the reptile park program began in 1981. (SDA)

Source: Blick