Red-back
Spider
Juvenile
Red-back spider
The
Red-back is Australia’s best known spider, and is part
of national folklore. They can live almost anywhere but do especially
well in the man-made, disturbed environments of both country
and city. Red-backs are closely related to the equally infamous
Black Widow Spiders of America.
Red-backs
are prodigious breeders. Each female makes several egg sacs
in a year and produces up to a thousand eggs. In warm conditions
when there’s plenty of food Red-back numbers can explode.
Red-backs
are constantly being transported around Australia, and sometimes
overseas, in a variety of freight. Recently, they were found
in the streets of Osaka in Japan, possibly shipped in from Australia
with a cargo of wood chips.
Hundreds
of Red-back spider bites are reported each year, but less than
20 per cent require anti-venom treatment.
Only
female Red-back spiders bite people. Male spiders are only a
tenth the size of females.
Visit
the Victorian
Spiders database for more details.
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