If you find a Sydney funnel-web spider, leave it alone, move people and pets away, and never try to pick it up or squash it by hand. The NSW Environment page on spiders in Sydney says the Sydney funnel-web has toxic, fast-acting venom, but it only bites as a last resort. A bite is a medical emergency, so call 000 straight away if anyone is bitten.
How to tell if it is a funnel-web
Funnel-webs are hard to identify, even for experts. NSW Environment says they have the same large, chunky body as other ground spiders, such as trapdoor, mouse and black house spiders. The best clue is the web. A funnel-web only builds its funnel-shaped web in the ground, most often under logs and thick leaf litter. Funnel-webs live in long burrows and lay silk trip lines out from the entrance, which tell the spider when an insect walks past. A trapdoor spider burrow often has a lid. A funnel-web burrow does not. Black house spiders are often mistaken for funnel-webs. People see their tube-shaped webs in garages or on window panes and worry. NSW Environment says funnel-webs are much larger and only build their webs in the ground. If you are not sure what you are looking at, follow its simple advice: if in doubt, stay away.
When you are most likely to see one
Most run-ins with Sydney funnel-webs happen in summer. NSW Environment explains that this is when males leave their burrows to look for females. A wandering male can end up on a patio, in a garage, or near shoes left by the back door. The spider moves slowly, takes time to rear up before it strikes, and spends most of its life in a burrow, so the chance of meeting one is very low. Picnic Point sits beside the Georges River bushland, where logs and leaf litter give ground spiders the cover NSW Environment describes, so if large dark spiders keep turning up near your back fence, book spider control in Picnic Point and point out where you saw them.
What to do in the first few minutes Stay calm, keep your distance, and then:
- Keep children and pets out of the area. If the spider is inside, close the door to that room.
- Do not touch it, poke it or try to catch it with your hands.
- Take a photo from a safe distance. It helps you describe what you saw.
- Watch where it goes, so you know which gap or corner it used.
- Shake out shoes, gloves and clothes left on the floor before anyone puts them on. healthdirect's spider bite guide also says to teach children never to touch spiders and to wear gloves when gardening. If a large black spider has come into a Revesby garage or laundry through the gap under the door, arrange urgent spider control in Revesby so the ground-level gaps and hiding spots around that room can be checked.
First aid for a funnel-web bite healthdirect says a funnel-web bite can cause bad pain at the bite, lots of sweating, nausea, vomiting and tummy pain.
Other signs include drooling, muscle twitching, trouble breathing, confusion, and numbness around the mouth and tongue. Mouse spider bites are rare, but they cause similar symptoms. Call 000 and ask for an ambulance. Then follow healthdirect's steps:
- Lie the person down and keep them still.
- Wrap an elastic roller bandage firmly over the bite.
- Wrap a second bandage over the whole arm or leg, starting at the fingers or toes and moving toward the body. It should be tight but not cut off blood flow.
- Use a splint to keep the limb still.
- Mark the bite with a pen or take a photo, and write down the time of the bite and the time the bandage went on.
- Wait for the ambulance. healthdirect says this bandage is for funnel-web or mouse spider bites, and for anyone bitten by a big, black, hairy spider when you cannot tell the type. The NSW Poisons Information Centre first aid page also says to use a pressure bandage for funnel-web bites but not for other spider bites. NSW Environment notes that no deaths have been reported since an antivenom was introduced in 1981.
Redbacks: the other spider to watch
Redbacks are much easier to spot. NSW Environment says they have round black bodies with a clear red stripe and build messy webs. healthdirect says a redback bite can cause a lot of pain, but it is not life-threatening, and most bites can be treated at home. A redback bite can cause pain where you were bitten, sweating, headache, and muscle weakness or spasms. First aid is different from a funnel-web bite:
- Wash the bite with soap and water.
- Put a cold pack on it for 15 minutes to ease the pain. Wrap the pack in a cloth first.
- See a doctor if symptoms are bad. Go to a hospital emergency department if the pain is very bad. Do not use a pressure bandage for a redback bite. A Padstow backyard where redback webs keep coming back under the same outdoor chairs or play equipment has a sheltered spot the spiders like, so book spider control in Padstow and show the technician those places. In a Georges Hall garden shed where you find redbacks behind stored pots and tools every summer, ask for fast spider control in Georges Hall that covers the shed corners, shelves and door frame.
Before you book
Write down what the spider looked like, where you saw it, what time of year it was, and whether there are children or pets in the home. Keep any photos you took from a safe distance. Send those details when you contact our pest control company in Bankstown, and you will get clear steps for the visit so the areas where spiders hide around your home can be checked.