Huge spider discovered with poisonous venom (Image: Getty)
A massive venomous spider has been discovered in Australia – and it’s one of the world’s deadliest.
The spider, a species of funnel-web, has just had its existence confirmed by scientists – and it’s advised to keep your distance from the deadly creature.
This funnel-web spider can grow up to 9cm – which is nearly twice the size of the Sydney funnel-web – a more common cousin of this one.
The huge spider has dubbed “big boy” and are said to release “copious amounts of venom”. The male species is most poisonous.
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Funnel-web spiders are renowned for their toxicity – and many are found in the city of Sydney. But this new type which can be up to 9cm (3.54 inches) is much bigger than the common funnel-web type – which grows up to 5cm.
Funnel-webs omit highly toxic venom with a bite which can be lethal to people.
Thankfully though, a highly effective antivenom – which was developed in the 1980s – prevents most fatalities from funnel-web spiders in Australia.
Before effective medicine was introduced, 13 deaths linked to funnel-webs were recorded, according to the Australian Museum.
“Big boy” funnel-web was initially discovered in the early 2000s, but has now been officially confirmed by Australian scientists.
The new huge variation was named Atrax christenseni in honour of the discovery of the creature in Newcastle – which is over 100 miles from Sydney.
Mr Christensen, former head of spiders at the Australian Reptile Park who made the discovery, told “Sometimes you might find them in a garage or in a bedroom or somewhere in the house where they might have wandered in during the night. I would not recommend touching them, that’s for sure, they do give copious amounts of venom.”
Scientists from the Australian Museum, Flinders University and Germany’s Leibniz Institute have said this new massive spider will be classified as a separate species of funnel-web.
Funnel-webs are found in eastern Australia, within around 100 miles (160km) of the city of Sydney. These spiders tend to be seen more frequently from November to April – because the more deadly male is out on the prowl after dark looking for females.