Funnel-web Spider Introduction

From sharks to box jellyfish in the sea to snakes and spiders on land, Australia has a reputation for being filled with animals ready to kill you. One land-dwelling animal that has the history to back up those claims is the funnel-web spider with venom that can kill a human in just 15 minutes. But other than warnings to wear gloves while gardening and to check your shoes before putting them on, how much do we actually know about these deadly arachnids? There are 35 species of funnel web, a number of which are found along Australia’s eastern coast, from New South Wales to Queensland  however, only one holds the title of world’s deadliest spider. The Sydney funnel-web (Atrax robustus) is generally found in both suburbia and bush land in an area bound by Newcastle to the north and Illawarra to the south. They are relatively large spiders, one male affectionately named ‘Big Boy’ by the Australian Reptile Park reached 10cm stretched out and have large, rearward-facing fangs capable of piercing through fingernails. They are aggressive spiders that are black in color, the front of their bodies shiny and hairless and their abdomens black or dark plum in color. Females are generally sedentary, remaining within burrows, their entrances framed by the species’ characteristic ‘funnel’ webbing, often positioned beneath rocks or logs in suburban gardens and bush land.