Meeting them can have very unpleasant consequences
The order of spiders includes more than 50 thousand species, and the diversity of representatives of this species is truly impressive. Spiders use venom for hunting and defense. It usually does not pose a threat to humans, but some species of spiders still have quite strong venom – their bite can cause severe pain, and without medical care, the victim can sometimes even die. “Mandry-Club” tells about the most dangerous spiders in the world.
Black widow
Perhaps the most famous poisonous spider is the black widow. This is the name of the entire genus Latrodectus, which includes more than 30 species, and some of its representatives, including the species Latrodectus mactans, which lives in North and South America. The spiders owe their name to the behavior of females, who usually kill males after mating.
The black widow is not characterized by aggressive behavior, but uses its venom for self-defense. Females are especially dangerous, as they can inject a sufficient dose of venom during a bite, causing severe pain, nausea, cramps, and paralysis. However, death from a black widow bite is extremely unlikely.
Brown widow
One of the most dangerous spiders is the brown widow (Latrodectus geometricus), which, as its common and Latin names suggest, is a relative of the black widow.
This species is common in Africa, but is also found in North and South America, Japan, and Australia. When in danger, the brown widow prefers to hide, and rarely bites humans. If this does happen, the spider’s venom can cause severe pain and a number of other symptoms, including convulsions, but the bite does not lead to death. This is partly due to the fact that the brown widow injects a relatively small dose of venom during a bite.
Brown recluse spider
Unlike many arachnids that are dangerous to humans, the brown recluse spider (Loxosceles reclusa), which is common mainly in the United States, has a very modest size, not exceeding 2 cm. But this does not prevent it from being venomous enough to cause serious harm to a bitten person.
This spider likes to crawl into cracks in the walls of houses, folds of clothes, and beds. At first, you may not pay attention to its bite: it feels like a light, almost mosquito bite. But after 3–4 hours, headache, nausea appear, then tissue necrosis and fever begin. If you don’t see a doctor in time, there is a possibility of serious health consequences and even death.
Tarantula
The tarantula genus includes more than 200 species that do not pose a fatal or even serious danger to humans. However, legends say otherwise. Once upon a time, Puglian tarantulas (Lycosa tarantula), which live in Southern Europe, were considered extremely poisonous and, according to old memory, they deserve a place in our list of dangerous spiders.
The belief was that a tarantula bite threatened a person with insanity, and the only way to treat tarantulism was to dance the tarantula. However, in reality, the bite of the Puglian tarantula can cause pain and a local allergic reaction, but it does not pose a threat.
The South Russian tarantula lives in Ukraine. Its bite is slightly unpleasant for humans and causes a tumor, but it is generally harmless.
Redback spider
The range of the redback spider (Latrodectus hasselti), which belongs to the genus black widows, covers Australia, New Zealand, and Southeast Asia, but sometimes these spiders are found in other regions. Females of this species are colored black and have a bright red stripe on the upper abdomen. Males are light brown and much smaller than their female counterparts.
Redback spiders are considered one of the most dangerous animals in Australia. Most often, after being bitten by them, people feel pain that goes away on its own, but sometimes the venom that gets into the bloodstream causes swollen lymph nodes, fever, fever, nausea, and insomnia. These symptoms undoubtedly serve as a reason to go to the hospital, where the victim will be given an antivenom, since the introduction of which no deaths from a red-backed spider bite have been recorded.
Sydney funnel-web spider
The Sydney funnel-web spider (Atrax robustus) should be considered an equally dangerous representative of the Australian arachnid fauna. It prefers humid places, sometimes falling into rivers and pools, from where compassionate tourists try to save it, and are bitten by spiders.
The toxins that enter the body as a result of a bite provoke increased heart rate, excessive sweating, and muscle cramps. Without proper help, a bitten person can die. It was only with the advent of an effective antidote in 1981 that Australians and visitors to the country began to fear the funnel spider a little less.
Missulena
There are 21 species of mouse spiders known in the world, all but one of which are found in Australia. Representatives of this genus of spiders got their name (Missulena) because people attributed to them the ability to dig deep holes, like mice and rats. When it turned out that this idea was wrong, it was too late to change the name.
The venom of mouse spiders kills insects and small mammals, including mice. Some experts believe that it can be dangerous for humans, but fortunately, there are no known fatalities due to a mouse spider bite – all bites were relatively light.
Mediterranean black widow
One of the world’s most dangerous spiders, the caracurtus (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus), lives along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, in Central Asia, the southern steppes of Ukraine, and on the Crimean Peninsula. This is another representative of the black widow genus on our list. The Mediterranean black widow feeds mainly on insects, but sometimes small rodents, snakes, and lizards become its prey.
Mediterranean black widow are not aggressive, but they use venom not only for hunting but also for self-defense. Horses, camels, and cows die from their bites. People bitten by this spider have severe pain in the abdomen, lower back, chest, chills, tremors, nausea, confusion, delirium, and hallucinations. In some cases, a bite from this spider can lead to death. Dogs and hedgehogs, on the other hand, are almost immune to the venom of the Mediterranean black widow.
Yellow sac spider
The
Yellow sac spider
(Cheiracanthium punctorium) probably deserves the title of the most dangerous spider in Europe. It has powerful enough chelicerae to pierce human skin and inject venom. In this case, a person feels acute pain, and a tumor appears around the bite site. Soon, the victim begins to suffer from headaches, nausea, dizziness, and fever. These symptoms usually disappear within a day. If the malaise lasts for more than a day, you need to go to the hospital.
Recently, the range of the spiny spider has been expanding, which is associated with global warming. Previously, it was found in Southern Europe and Central Asia, but now it is gradually entering Germany and the southern regions of Ukraine.
Brazilian wandering spiders
The tropical forests of South and Central America are literally teeming with deadly poisonous animals. The Brazilian wandering spider (Phoneutria nigriventer) is on this list. It is fast, aggressive, and constantly in search of prey. Defending itself from enemies, it goes on the attack. Some experts consider this spider to be the most poisonous in the world.
Often, it is enough to simply pierce the skin with its chelicerae without injecting venom to scare away unwanted guests. If the spider injects a neurotoxin into the human body, the victim will experience severe pain, heart palpitations, and other unpleasant symptoms. There are several documented cases of death from the bite of this spider, but an effective antidote has been created for its venom.
Conclusion
In this article, we have reviewed the ten most dangerous spiders in the world that can cause serious harm to humans with their venom. We have learned how they live, what they eat, and how they defend themselves against enemies. We also gave some useful tips on how to avoid contact with these spiders and what to do in case of a bite. We hope that this article helped you better understand these amazing and scary creatures and taught you to be more careful and attentive in nature. Remember that spiders are not only enemies, but also useful animals that play an important role in the ecosystem. Therefore, you should not kill them unless necessary, but rather respect them and stay away from them.
