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The Mouse Spider is a member of the Trapdoor
family. Trapdoor spiders include the Funnel-web, Mouse,
Whistling, and Curtain-web spiders; they are distinguished by the
stocky body, long leg-like palps, and two knee-like lobes to which
the fangs join (chelicerae) in front. Most live in burrows with or
without trapdoors in the ground, but some live in trees. Trapdoor
spiders have powerful chelicerae and four pale patches (the
book-lungs) under the abdomen. The correct identification of
Trapdoor spiders is often quite complicated.
There are two types of Mouse Spider in Australia- the Red Headed Mouse
Spider and the Eastern Mouse Spider. The Latin name is Missulena
Occatoria. At full size, the Mouse Spider are about the size of
a 50c piece or 1 to 3 centimetres. They have short stocky legs with
tiny eyes spread across the head. The male Red Headed Mouse spider
(pictured below) has a bright red head and a blue abdomen. The Mouse
Spider lives all over Australia but not in Tasmania. It lives in
arid conditions as well as rainforests and bushlands. The home of
the Mouse Spider is a burrow, oval shaped, of moderate depth and
straight down. Female spiders spends all their lives in the burrow.
Male spiders wander in Spring to Autumn. The burrow may be plastered
with mud and digestive juices then lined with silk. They also live
in other parts of the world like the USA.
The females tend to remain in or near their burrows throughout
their life, and are sluggish spiders that are rarely aggressive.
However M. occatoria females have been found to produce copious amounts of highly toxic venom, which is potentially as dangerous as that of the Sydney Funnel-web Spider. A male M. bradleyi caused a serious envenomation in a child in the Brisbane region. Males wander during early winter, especially after rain. They will assume a threatening posture if disturbed.
A bite should be treated the same as a funnel web bite and immediate
first aid should be applied. Apply a pressure bandage over the
bitten area as high up the limb as possible. Immobilise the victim.
If possible, carefully collect spider for positive identification.
Do not wash venom off the skin, as retained venom will assist
identification. |
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