Australian Reptile Park
The Australian Reptile Park has had a video go viral of 100 baby funnel web spiders crawling out of an egg sack gaining over half a million views in less than 48 hours.
Watch it here
The egg sack was handed in to The Australian Reptile Park by a member of the public as a part of the funnel web spider antivenom program with the spiderlings being raised in-house to be milked once they become adults to help save lives.
To highlight the importance of the need for funnel web spiders, Head of Reptiles and Spiders, Daniel Rumsey, comments “The Australian Reptile Park is the ONLY place in Australia that milks funnel web spider venom to make into antivenom. Before the antivenom was developed 33 years ago, there were 13 recorded deaths in NSW by funnel webs, but there has been zero fatalities since the development of the antivenom in 1981.”
“Summer is funnel web season, so now is the time people will be seeing funnel webs more and more” noted Rumsey, “we need to public to assist us with bringing funnel web spiders to The Australian Reptile Park”
Rumsey adds “If you are an adult and feel safe to do so, please catch the funnel webs using a big glass jar and keeping your hands away from the spider, coax the spider into the jar and bring it to us or one of our drop-off points – you will literally be helping us save lives”
If a member of the public was to be bitten by a funnel web spider, Rumsey says “stay as calm as possible and apply the correct first aid, which is a pressure immobilisation bandage and get to hospital as fast as you possibly can.”
