A little over 3 weeks ago, I posted about the Australian brown snake as one of the most venomous snakes in the world. It came as a warning in the wake of a fatality from a brown snake bite prior to my post.
This weekend just gone, we were visited by a different venomous creature, the redback spider. They're not a large spider but don't let that fool you. I remember as a kid being warned about the dangerous black spider with the red stripe on its back. It's part of the general knowledge that's required living in Australia.
The redback spider in our doorway this weekend
I happened to notice the spider in the corner of our front door, with a messy web and a spherical silk egg sac. Each such sac apparently contains an average of 250 eggs. Quite impressive given the small size of the sphere. Wikipedia has the following to say about the egg sac.
Spiderlings hatch from their eggs after about 8 days and can emerge from the egg sac as early as 11 days after being laid, although cooler temperatures can significantly slow their development so that emergence does not occur for months. After hatching they spend about a week inside the egg sac.
The redback egg sac, a silky sphere holding an average of 250 eggs
The redback is said to have originated in Australia but now can be found throughout south east Asia. Interestingly, the female is the larger of the genders and only the female carries the red stripe. Even so, the female is typically only 10mm in size, yet she's highly venomous and can be seriously harmful to humans. Apparently there have been no deaths directly related to redback bites since antivenom has been available, but that is not to encourage complacency.
Look how easy this beautiful yet venomous spider can be to miss!
Although I hate doing so, given the dangerous nature of this spider I disposed of her. I actually noticed some tiny spiderlings in the process. Normally, I like to trap spiders or insects that I find in the house in a glass and relocate them outside but I didn't want 250 redbacks in the entryway of our home! It's sad but I have my family to look out for!
Another beautiful and deadly Australian resident. Thanks for reading!