After the torrential rains and floods in Australia, experts are warning of a poisonous spider plague in the metropolis of Sydney. „The upcoming warm weather and high humidity are perfect conditions for a funnel-web spider boom in the coming days,“ said Australian Reptile Park chief Tim Faulkner today.
The floods in the Sydney region had driven the animals from their traditional habitats and sought refuge in drier areas. „Unfortunately, that could mean that they could find their way into apartments and houses very soon,“ warned Faulkner.
In the past few days, images of thousands of spiders had already spread on the Internet, crawling up close to fences and buildings while fleeing the water.
Since antidote: No known deaths
Funnel web spiders are some of the most venomous spiders in the world and are at home in the Sydney region. To date, 13 deaths from funnel-web spider bites have been recorded. There have been no known deaths since an antidote program was introduced in the early 1980s.
The Australian Reptile Park north of Sydney – which produces the antidote – called on people “who dare to do it” to catch wandering funnel-web spiders and deliver them to collection points.
