Snake-Eating Spider

By Alex in Animals & Pets on Oct 19, 2008 at 1:03 am

Here’s something for those of you who are afraid of snakes and spiders: a dramatic photo gallery at The Cairns Post of a redback spider eating a snake!

The email accompanying the images claims a receptionist at an electrical firm came in to work on Tuesday to find the snake caught up in the web. It is believed the snake got caught in the web on Monday night.

Throughout Tuesday, the spider checked on her prey, but on Wednesday she rolled it up and started spinning a web around it. She also kept lifting it higher off the ground, while continually snacking on it.

Redback spider, by the way, is considered one of the most poisonous spiders in Australia: Link | Gallery – via Quiddity

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su.wei
Oct 19th, 2008 at 1:17 am
im going to have the heebie jeebies and nightmares. yuck.
jodie
Oct 19th, 2008 at 2:19 am
wow. just…wow. i can’t believe that they let such a poisonous spider stay inside the office…and that must’ve been one helluva strong web to hold that relatively large snake. i have to say it was pretty generous of the workers to let it stay and finish off the snake. i suppose it was something to see. a (hopefully) once in a lifetime opporunity to watch ‘thing eat thing’. still…wow.
Larfin Jackarse
Oct 19th, 2008 at 4:10 am
Redbacks are a bitch but usually hide outside under logs and things ie shy. Inside an office??? Bit a snake??? IMHO the snake was ill, dead or fed to it. I am not saying that a redback couldn’t bite a small snake but also in an office???? Also Redback webs are small or non-existent.

ps: how exotic is ‘Cairns’ hey? miles from anywhere in Oz. Bitch to know it is infested by something more dangerous than a redback, another Murdoch (‘Fox’) publication
Monyet Miskin
Oct 19th, 2008 at 6:50 am
To give you an idea of scale, the biggest redbacks are about the size of a pea. So the snake is probably a hatchling.
Redbacks make their web in dark corners and are normally not aggressive unless provoked. So I guess the office workers were keeping it as a kind of pet.
The pain from the bite is extremely painful and causes massive swelling for days, but not lethal to adults unless the swelling causes an unfortunate blockage (such as the throat). Always check under the seat when using an outside toilet in Australia.
fz
Oct 19th, 2008 at 7:12 am
Tiny snake.

I remember seeing a video of a Sydney Funnel Web (I’m pretty sure that was the spider) vs. a poisonous snake. The spider won and proceeded to turn the snake’s head into a mushy syrup.
Katharine
Oct 19th, 2008 at 8:24 am
Is ‘redback’ another name for ‘black widow’?
Katharine
Oct 19th, 2008 at 8:26 am
The hourglass appears to be on the underside of the spider – although it’s probably a redback unless black widow spiders somehow got introduced to Australia.
bayamus
Oct 19th, 2008 at 9:10 am
Judging from what I see on that website I am never going to Cairns! Spider eating snakes! Gangs attacking firefighters! Pharmacists getting robbed by knifepoint! Toddler killing palmtrees! Hmm but they do have free flights….
jodie
Oct 19th, 2008 at 11:32 am
if you follow the link and take a look at the photos – in the 4th pic the snake has a fairly big wound. it doesn’t look like a spider caused it. it looks more like a stab hole.
DJR
Oct 19th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
I’m gonna have nightmares tonight…
Ewwwwwwww.
Alex
Oct 19th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
@Katharine – redback looks like a black widow, but they’re different species.
Thomas
Oct 20th, 2008 at 2:23 am
Just one more example of how Australia tries to kill everyone who goes there.
Micaman
Oct 20th, 2008 at 8:21 am
) WOW! Damn scary! Is that a spider from 300? It must be a spartan spider…
Ali S.
Oct 20th, 2008 at 7:27 pm
Ah! I’m going to have nightmares for days now.
zazie
Oct 25th, 2008 at 4:10 pm
I’ve seen a redback eating a small lizard, about the same size as this snake, when i was 11.

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