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(#10) Red Widow Spider
Size: Red Widow Spiders are very small, but pack a deadly punch in their venom.
Location: Central and Southern Florida, found mostly in sand dunes near the Sand Pine tree.
Distinguishing Features: Most possess dark red legs with a black thorax spotted with red spots and yellow rings.
Why You Should Be Scared: Their venom is thought to be deadly, but given the spider's size, it is not thought to possess enough venom in a single individual to result in the death of a human. Bites can cause pain and irritation at the bite-site, but the spider seldom comes into contact with humans due to its limited range.
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(#4) Brazilian wandering spider
- Phoneutria
Size: They can reach a length of up to 1.89" (48 mm).
Location: Tropical regions of South America with a single subspecies found in Central America.
Distinguishing Features: Many examples possess a dark linear stripe on their dorsal pedipalps with a single black line running along the dorsal carapace. They also have disturbingly large fangs comparable to their body size.
Why You Should Be Scared: Their venom contains a potent neurotoxin, which can become deadly by causing a loss of muscle control and breathing problems resulting in paralysis and asphyxiation. The venom also causes intense pain and inflammation following the bite. These spiders should be avoided at all costs due to the pain they cause, but some subspecies will bite without delivering venom in what is called a "dry" bite. It is believe they do this to conserve venom, but this also means that they tend to have a full supply at most times.
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(#2) Sydney funnel-web spider
- Atrax robustus
Size: Can reach a size of 2 inches (5 cm)
Location: Literally, on your back right now!!! Sorry, it had to be done. They are native to Eastern Australia and are most often found within 62 miles (100 km) of the city of Sydney.
Distinguishing Features: Instead of weaving a web meant to trap insects, they weave a tubular burrow with collapsed tunnels.
Why You Should Be Scared: If one of these nasty little buggers bites you, you should find some antivenom as fast as possible. Their venom is composed of a compound, which makes it highly toxic to humans. When they bite, they tend to strike multiple times—delivering enough venom to kill with each strike. Children are at a higher risk than adults due to their size. There has been one recorded case of a small child dying within only 15 minutes of being bitten.
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(#3) Wolf spider
- Lycosidae
Size: The largest of the species can reach a length of 1" (2.5 cm).
Location: Wolf Spiders make up more than 2,300 species and are spread across the globe.
Distinguishing Features: Wolf Spiders do not weave webs, but instead, hunt their prey on the ground.
Why You Should Be Scared: Wolf Spider venom causes a great deal of swelling, itching, and pain at the bite-site with some subspecies' venom resulting in necrosis. Necrosis causes tissue to die and rot away, which is incredibly painful and damaging to anyone who gets bitten. When threatened, Wolf Spiders will bite and continue to inject venom until they are emptied.
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(#8) Brown Widow Spider
Size: 0.5" (16 mm) in length.
Location: Brown Widow Spiders were thought to originate in South America, but have since spread across most of the world with populations in South Africa, the United States, Afghanistan, and elsewhere.
Distinguishing Features: Most examples of the species possess a dark brown body with light brown legs.
Why You Should Be Scared: Brown Widow Spiders possess a deadly venom, but do not often have enough venom within their bites to result in the death of a human. Their bites result in painful and itchy lesions. They present a greater threat to children and the elderly, but don't often require medical treatment following a bite except for extreme cases.
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(#7) Redback Spider
Size: Relatively small only reaching a length of around 0.16" (4 mm)
Location: It is believed to have originated in the south Australian and Western deserts, but now exists across the entire continent, Southeast Asia, and New Zealand.
Distinguishing Features: Most possess a red band along their abdomen. The females are typically black while the males can be a light brown.
Why You Should Be Scared: Given all the deadly animals in Australia, the Redback Spider holds the distinction of being the animal historically responsible for requiring antivenom treatment more than any other animal on the continent. There are between 2,000 and 10,000 bites occurring annually and the venom causes intense pain in humans and represents a greater threat to small children and the elderly.
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About This Tool
There are about 40,000 different spider species living on the earth. Whether they are crawling on the web with eight legs or rushing out of their nests, which are signals that they are ready to pounce and kill prey. Many terrifying spiders are nightmares. Although many spiders are harmless, there are some particularly large and poisonous species that can kill humans.
Like most animals, spiders are afraid of humans, and some spider species are beautiful but deadly. The random tool introduced 10 of the scariest spiders on the planet and they are all vital to keep the ecological balance.
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