I love how you show the lengths this spider went to avoid biting you, it just wasn't interested until you gave it no other option. Keep making great videos and fighting misinformation!
Cheers! I think showing how reluctant it was to bite is, if anything, even more important than the mildness of the bite itself when it comes to demonstrating how inoffensive these animals are.
@@Skankhunt1Already seen it. Once again, there is no way to rule out secondary infection as a possible cause of the effects. In the meantime, I’ll continue to regard actual scientific studies as more reliable sources than news segments.
A lot of staph infections I’ve seen get miss identified as spider bites or a benign spider bite gets infected with staph and suddenly a common house spider has a “necrotic bite”
@@BugsandBiology since you have a very detailed knowledge of things like the effects of bites from spiders you might know the answer to this question, would I be correct in saying that white tailed spiders do not deserve their reputation for being very dangerous spiders ? . I actually got bitten by a white tailed spider while I was sleeping at my unit and it really didn't do much damage to me at all. The only noticeable effects that I had from being bitten were the puncture marks on my leg where I got bitten and a small itchy lump around the site where I got bitten, but apart from those symptoms nothing happened to me and I was completely fine and okay
Fantastic video man! White-tailed spiders aren’t super well known in the US, but they’re a species that I’ve always liked and I’m happy to see such a thoughtful and educational video about them, there aren’t many of those out there. I’m almost surprised that the bite was as weak as it was, but her reluctance to bite was the thing that stuck out to me. Really solid piece, nothing felt too long and I appreciate the level of depth that you approach these topics with.
Your demonstration makes a valid point in that these are usually placid and retiring. You’ll have a higher number of encounters in New Zealand where these are now ubiquitous. It wasn’t unusual to see 10 per day when I was in the building trade there. They will quickly occupy new buildings and like to lay-up under roofing. I have also seen these exhibit a threat display when attending their eggs, usually around November, but some of them appear almost dormant, including a very large one I found under roofing - probably 45mm leg to leg with an abdomen and cephalothorax about 25mm. A colleague of mine was bitten on the back of the thumb and we observed a string of ulcers tracking up his wrist over several days. We also saw the crushed spider. This was quickly curtailed by topical antibiotics and aloe-vera. So as much as the ‘experts’ deny and invoke misidentification there is likely a mechanism not yet understood that enables reactions. This was also mentioned by a NZ medical doctor in regard to many of his elderly and likely compromised patients. I no longer have the source material for this. At one time I encountered so many of these daily that I contacted the DSIR entomology department and received exactly the same information as you present. But they did caution me against the large centipedes which were also present and said they can be medically significant. Do I think that these spiders are incredibly toxic? No, probably not. But I can not discount that which I have personally observed and will shake out clothing and shoes and generally discourage them taking up residence. BTW: I have only seen 5 in the 12 years I have lived in West Australia, so population density is much higher in NZ where they have been resident since around 1897, having thought to have first arrived on a shipment of timber to Waiwera, north of Auckland. They are now established throughout the North and South Islands. Probably due to having no natural predators as is typical with introduced species in NZ.
I think secondary infections are always a possibility, as they are with any untreated wound. I once had a mosquito bite get horribly infected and end up looking like a snakebite, but that was nothing to do with what the mosquito itself was directly capable of. As for the giant centipedes, NZ giant centipedes are Cormocephalus rubriceps, and Cormocephalus in general don’t seem to be all that venomous.
@@BugsandBiology I've seen a secondary infection happen after a whitetail bite I've witnessed. The bite area got a bit oozy after a few days and it was treated easily with iodine, but it did take a few weeks to heal completely, which i found pretty strange. My ex use to sit at her computer with her leg under her, i know how weird how some women sit. Where she had folded her leg under her there was a hole the size of a 50c coin which the spider filled up pretty well, as she felt a slight pinch she got up and i saw a whitetail sitting in the hole. I said to her you're fine whitetail bites are harmless, until a few days later when i saw the bite area. I doubt it was the spider that caused the infection, i think it was more the old nasty chair but you could clearly see the 2 little holes where she was bitten.
I think the no BS part is why the algorithm doesn't serve him well. The algorithm is not made to give the viewer what they necessarily want and would enjoy watching, it is instead designed to prioritize things that catch your attention enough to watch.
This is similar to here in america, where people blame the brown recluse on absolutely any wound you get. Some states don't even have the recluse and they are still blamed and every unknown brown spider being labeled one.
Yeah it’s basically become a meme at this point. Every brown spider is a recluse. Just like how here in Australia, every dark coloured spider is a funnel-web.
Thanks for yet another amazing informative video! :) I'm pretty far away from Australia, but I remember many years ago seeing a youtube video on these spiders and it definitely made them seem like this absolutely terrifying lil spider. How this spider was one of the reasons in Australia it is a must to tap your shoes to check for spiders. Videos like that fed so much worse in my fear at the time. Thankfully there is now channels like yours- that have not only great information and based on fact, but also the visual to show that spiders don't come even remotely near the monsters many of us tend to believe. My fear used to be so irrational I used to think relocating spiders outside would make them come back inside and want revenge and would for sure then bite me. I hated something had to be killed in order for me to have ease, so I decided to start learning more about them because I believe fear more often than not comes about when we do not understand something. I really appreciate channels like yours as they have been a tremendous help in not only overcoming my phobia, but also learning to even appreciate and see beauty and cuteness in spiders. I also love to share videos like yours with friends that also struggle with fear but are open to overcoming said fear. (Also I hope my rambling made sense, English is not my native language)
3:15 It was way back in the '80s that scientists made the discovery about white tail spider's venom. However, it was also found that some white tail spiders carry a virus that does cause necrosis. The same virus can be found in ground soil, in certain areas. That's another reason why we should always wash our hands after digging in the garden. (This was mentioned on the JJJ radio Thursday science phone-in show, a few years ago.) I also know from experience that white tail spiders are a bit aggressive. One two occasions, I've had a white tail spider follow me in a room. One time in a lounge room, where the spider was on the wall. It actually jumped off the wall and onto my back. I don't know if it bit me, though. The other time was in the bathroom. I was standing in one area, while the spider stared at me from the ceiling. When I moved, the spider turned and followed me. When I was in the shower, I looked up and the white tail spider had followed me across the room and it was staring down at me from the ceiling.
I wouldn't call that aggressive, that just sounds more inquisitive. Jumping spiders do things similar to that, and they certainly aren't aggressive. Was probably just curious
Thankyou so much for putting yourself through that for the sake of education. My family has always had a severe fear of white tails, so I've also been terrified of them the most throughout my life. Your videos have helped me the most with my fear of spiders, and it's about to be "white tails invading my home every other night" season so you've made this at a convenient time for me 😅 I was stunned at how difficult it was to get him to even bite you properly. My little pet wolf spider is basically a savage (seriously he's like a chihuahua 😂) and I was really expecting the white tail to be the same! Another great video as always, looking forward to the next one 😊
NZ is swarming with Badumnas, probably the most common spider you'll see here. Not surprisingly Lamponas are very common, also not surprisingly people are shi+ scared of them, believe they are 'poisonous', will freak out and empty an entire can of flyspray on the poor little buggers. Ironically I've noticed that Lamponas are amazingly resilient, often surviving said fly spray and even the boot.
I wonder if the belief in the potency of the bite of the white tailed spider comes from it being a spider hunter. "If it kills other spiders, it must therefore be more venomous." I also suspect that many of the medically significant reactions to spider bites are either allergic reactions or infection due to bacteria left on the spider's fangs from its last meal. But I am certainly no expert.
It’s likely that secondary infections are from other external sources, as spiders are very meticulous cleaners. And yeah, I have seen that assumption about spiders being more venomous than their prey. Have heard people try to justify the myth about daddy long legs being extremely venomous by saying they’re able to kill a Redback, and must therefore be more toxic.
@@BugsandBiologythey do seem to have more "dirty" fangs than other spiders? There's no doubt people have bacterial infections after being bitten. I don't think they are all lying nor do I think they have the venom to cause serious necrosis so that leaves the possibility they have a higher than average ability to cause infection with their bites?
What's funny about that is a metric ton of spider hunters aren't particularly venomous to humans. (Like there's obviously medically significant ones) but you also have huntsmans, most tarantulas, wolf's, ect that for the most part aren't medically significant (there might be a tarantulas species I'm blanking on, there's so many but I don't believe there's a medically significant tarantulas, do correct me on this if I'm wrong) Most spider hunters rely more on size, speed, and strength to bully the other spider as in the spider world no matter how venomous you are 1 bite normally does it, so you'd rather be bigger and stronger and more able to get your bite off first.
@@lunaeons45 I actually live in Adelaide which is full of white tips and I've seen them kill larger black house spiders numerous times and once saw one stalk a huge huntsman across a warehouse floor before biting it from behind and eventually killing it! It did not get to feast on the huntsman because someone came along with a sweeper and pushed the body outside and the white tip ran off!
It’s like the brown recluse spider here in the States, once in a while someone has a bad reaction to the venom but most people don’t have much reaction at all.
The number of times i heard an Aussie say something similar to "it is true! My aunts arm fell off after a white tail bite". This belief will never go away, as most people are immune to evidence, logic and reason.
Someone had to do it. Of course it was you! Yeah we do see these a lot in our homes here down south. I've only ever encountered a couple in my garden. The majority I bump into inside the house. Found a juvenile one yesterday inside one of my cats bed blankets. They are the most frequently encountered spider I find in the house. Second place is daddy long legs followed by jumping spiders and the occasional huntsman. I've noticed the fear mongering articles about amputations run by the media like to highlight the (UNCONFIRMED) white tail spider bite in the headline, but upon reading these articles the common thread shared by these stories seems to be the victim having diabetes; which puts them at higher risk of dangerous infections from ANY cut, scratch or bite. Always clean your wounds people! If you inadvertently scratch any kind of bug bite, make sure you clean it after too. And scrub your hands and under your finger nails while you're at it.
Even the false widow was more eager to bite me when it bit my thumb after I accidently mistook it for a piece of fluff in the dark in my bed. The False Widow of England has a similar largely exaggerated reputation as having necrotic bites as the White Tailed Spider, I experienced extremely minor symptoms of a throbbing thumb which subsided after 2 hours. No necrotic lesions either!
I'm from the UK and came across 2 whitetails during my visit to Melbourne recently, they were so chill and I felt so much more comfortable using cup-and-paper on the one in my bed than anything at home
The closest I've ever got to the necrotic bites White-Tails are feared for is an unknown insect bite that I scratched and scratched and scratched until it turned into a slightly pussy wound about the size of a 20 cent piece... which eventually got less and less severe and is now just a faint scar. So... clean your wounds guys and please try not to scratch them... I know it's very hard to not scratch but you can at least try.
Can definitely concur. I scratched a mosquito bite on school camp when I was 13 and after a few days it looked more like a snakebite. Never scratched any bites after that.
The horror story's I've heard are from people who had an allergic reaction to the bite. The same as bee stings are harmless to most people but can kill the few unlucky ones that go into anaphylactic shock.
We have similar looking species here in America called parsons spider and most of them have a white heart 🤍 on their rumps. But I hear you there are so many horror stories about spiders here as well and pretty much all of them are nonsense and probably weren’t even spider bites. People unfortunately love to blow things way out of proportion. Thanks for all the great work you do and love that you set those stories straight.
I love this keep up the great work!! I find it fascinating that it took a lot for this spider to bite you, people assume that spiders want to bite you when really they want nothing to do with you. I love this channel keep it up!
Yeah I was contemplating cutting some of the failed attempts so the video didn't drag, but then I realised they were the most important part of the message; not that the bite itself was mild, but that it took so much effort to make the spider bite in the first place.
Thank You for going to such great lengths to bust the myth about White Tail Bites and the toxicity of it's venom. It was actually reluctant to bite and You literally had to coax it to bite.
Necrosis occurs as a result of infection at the wound site, and the only determinant factors are the size of the puncture wound and the likelihood that spider has recently come in contact with a pathogen. It's sort of shocking that in the murder bug capital of the world, it's not common knowledge that any puncture wound from any insect, reptile, or even dropbears (especially dropbears...) can become necrotic. Hek mate, even a Bogan with a sharp tooth can give ya a staph infection that might cost you a finger.
It’s less to do with what the spider may have come in contact with (spiders are very clean animals), and more to do with whatever may be on your skin or under your nails. Also it’s a bit of a stretch to call Australia the “murder bug capital of the world”. Asian, African and South American bugs are in another league entirely.
@@BugsandBiology fair enough. But you're fighting an uphill battle in the war against popular opinion. I mean, your birds had to evolve back into dinosaurs just to stand a chance.
Haha, not really. Giant flightless birds have been a recurring thing for tens of millions of years on multiple continents - I mean, just look at terror birds. Australian animals as a whole are insanely overrated.
@@ZennExileIt’s also worth noting that ostriches kill more people every year than cassowaries have in recorded history. And both documented cassowary related fatalities are kinda underwhelming.
Good job mate! We get maybe 1 a week in the house, probably looking for all our black house spiders around the windows. South Gippsland seems to have an endless supply of them.
Never heard of this spider... But now that I see it I distinctly remember that my second cousin's ex-boyfriend's uncle's manager was bitten by such a spider and then she instantly imploded into a black hole which consumed the entire galaxy! Scary stuff. (Very pretty & polite spider though! And wonderful narration as usual.)
The main Way people get bitten by spiders comes from either them moving in their sleep, or putting clothes on without checking for spiders. Which ends up pinning the spider to the person and gives the spider no choice, but also the person doing it no real fault either. Just an unfortunate situation, like how we wouldn't blame a dog for say biting us if we slept on top of it and squished it
This video is so underrated! People should give you more credit, you've become the next coyote Peterson, getting bitten willingly by a whitetail is admirable. Also, i have a question, can these things jump? I recently had one on my roof and i was terrified that it would jump on me.
Most Spiders/and other Inverts or Insects have been given a bad name by the media when in fact they are not even half as bad as they are made out to be 🤔
It’s a frustrating myth, especially down here in Victoria where they are so common. Explaining that they are harmless, beneficial even, given their role in spider population control will generally garner looks of disbelief.
Yeah it’s gotten so established that it’s almost common “knowledge”. Plus many people get very passionate and defensive if you call their anecdotes into question.
This actually makes me really curious. My mum is Terrified of White Tails, cause years back, she was bitten by something in her sleep, and the reaction she had was blamed on said Spider. Her face swelled up and bruised so badly it looked like she'd been punched. It would go down, then a few days later, swell up again in the same place. But if these spiders don't have that effect, I really wonder what actually did bite her. Or if maybe she was just allergic to whatever bit her.
Really enjoyed this, also the care used to not harm the spider. It's taken years to knockdown the white tail myths, now we carefully relocate any we find in the house or just leave them be. One thing I'm unsure of is why some here are larger with an all black rounded thorax, while others are smaller with the distinctive black arrow thorax tipped white.
Is it possible some of the more stocky spiders you’re seeing are black house spiders? They seem to match your description. That or they’re female white tails (the one in this vid is a male) which are a bit more robust than males, albeit still with a distinctive white spot.
@@BugsandBiology I've seen some bigger ones like that though they still have the white on the end. On the road to Tuena there is a single lane bridge that crosses the Abercrombie river and some camp grounds just around the corner, at night all the spiders come out including those larger white tail spiders. Great spot if you're into spiders.
Well done, and way to congratulate that spider he was most certainly way too unwilling to assert any type of aggression in spite of your near constant provocation! Well done from the US my brother, you're doing an excellent job bringing awareness to some truly phenomenal creatures we share the planet with. Keep the content rolling!
I work in pest control in Perth Australia and I pick up white tails and Redbacks. I try to educate people that these spiders don't deliberately bite unless provoked. It's good people like you are showing these videos as it proves my point too.
Here in NZ, I was inadvertently bitten rescuing one from the shower. It bit me on the side of my hand when it was pressed against me, trying to transfer it to a surface. My skin was rather tight and itchy for a few days, but no worse than that.
My god I love this spider's colors its crazy to think people are so afraid of these wonderful specimens. Its always a treat watching your vids man thank you!
Cheers! They really are quite a pretty spider. Yeah myths can spread like wildfire, especially when fear is added to the mix. White-tails are probably feared about as much as redbacks and funnel-webs in Australia.
I recall an article from this year claiming a woman was bitten on the foot by a white-tail and consequently had to have her leg amputated due to a severe case of necrosis. But I'm wondering if it really happened due to other complications, and not necessarily a direct cause of the bite itself.
Yeah it’d almost certainly be other complications. Heck, the initial cause may not have even been a spider. It’s commonplace for unknown infections to be blamed on spiders.
I literally own some of the most cranky spiders out there, closest ive had to anything chasing me is when they run away from me in my direction. Some spiders pick a direction and run because they cant see very well, sometimes they choose wrong and its your direction. These white tails are really cute actually
I do much appreciate this vid bro because I’ve been so scared of these spiders and it looks like for nothing…i used to go out of my way to kill these on sight but i will no more and let the beautiful creatures live…thank you 👍🏾I’m from vic where they are a plenty so ill be sharing this with my family and friends
The down-right forcing of the spider to bite you made me chuckle, such an unaggressive animal. Thanks for making these informative & clear-cut videos. I feel like my only remaining fear of the land down under is the waters edge. Although perhaps it's best to avoid that bite test.
When I lived in Cairns (far enough north to be within box jellyfish/crocodile range), I was scared to go within ten metres of the water. So I know what the fear is like. Thankfully, the beaches are much safer in most parts of the country.
Poor little buddy. I know your heart is in the right place, showing the true nature of our little eight legged buddies. This is the fourth video I've seen from you. I don't think you need to push that individual to annoyance to prove your point, you have science behind you. Keep up the good work, bubbas.
@@BugsandBiology I reread my comment and meant no disrespect. I said poor little buddy, sympathizing with our little spider friend. I know that the demonstration was for the benefit of both our species and that he was not hurt in the end, but I can empathize with having my day messed with just to prove a point. I hope for the best for you and your channel. Have a great day, boss.
Being a little scared of white tails (just their look and movement), what did that little bite feel like around the midway point? You recoiled a bit, did it hurt quite a lot when the fangs went in? Could you describe it? Just super nervous about getting bitten unexpectedly one day, I see them a fair bit...
@@BugsandBiology Thanks for replying! It looked like you recoiled pretty heavily at first, was that mainly just as it was unexpected? Sorry for all the questions
I swear that they're on the pest control posters in Aus', matched with other medically significant spiders so when you inevitably see one in your house you freak out and call the pest control people. All a marketing move. But thanks for doing this for science!
There is a theory that some white tailed spiders may have flesh eating bacteria on their fangs. A case in point was a South Australian woman who was bitten on the hand while gardening. She was wearing gloves and when bitten took them off to discover a large white tail inside. She immediately went and washed the bite site only to see a 10 cent size piece of skin slough off. Over the following days and weeks this developed into a large necrotic wound that eventually required several attempts at skin grafts before they finally took.
The issue with the bacteria explanation is that the studies concerning confirmed bite records were not limited to any particular cause; regardless of whether the supposed necrosis is caused by venom or bacteria, you’d expect at least one of the documented bites to have shown such symptoms, yet none did.
I live in the Pacific Northwest of the US and hear the fear is the brown recluse spider which doesn't even live here but yet it's been diagnosed as the reason for a lot of these wounds that was some study has shown has been actually MRSA or staph infections
Yeah, I figured that I could address the myth verbally - the research is there after all, but actions speak louder than words, so I opted for a bite demonstration as well.
That spider had zero interest in biting you, even under extreme duress. Thankyou for this video it has been very informative and hopefully clears up some of the false information out there.
I got bitten by a white tail a couple times a week ago ,not for the first time... I roled on it at night ,it kinda made a little blister that poped and it melted away a little dibbit out of my skin but nothing to bad. I get that they overhyped how bad they can be but at same time I've picked up a peace of wood with no shirt and just shorts on and ended up with 4 big white tails crawling over my chest , if you got bitten by a whole nest of them maybe 5 times and you weren't the healthiest person to start off with you might have a few problems and need to see s doctor......its seems to depend on the person like i usually have like i said from them ,but I've seen two people with some quiet bad saws and infections from them .....im just saying it might still be a little miss understood , for spiders i quite like the white tail its s hunter like me
These things are ubiquitous in Auckland, New Zealand. You’ll see them virtually every day in semi-urban areas in summer. Rumours persisted that their venom was dangerous not owing to its negligible toxicity but a bacterium that ‘infected’ their venom sacs.
Yeah I’ve heard. Either way, irrespective of the mechanisms behind the apparent necrotic effects (venom or bacteria) you’d think case studies would have found at least one instance of it occurring, especially given how prevalent the anecdotes are.
@@BugsandBiology - in a weird way (or perhaps in a completely bog standard predictable way), this really does confirm how pervasive any kind of bias can be. I still ‘regard’ these things as ‘dangerous’ even though I know they’re not, and you’re right about the ‘friend of a friend’ thing - my godfather / ‘uncle’ was bitten by one of these whilst gardening (so the family claim), and his arm ‘swelled up’, but no first hand confirmation of why they attributed that symptom to the bite of that particular spider even if they happened to see it after the event. I can remember capturing these things and putting ‘em in little plastic vials to take to my entomologist friend (then working at a video store), to brag about how I’d caught a lethal spider like I was that Julian Sands in _Arachnophobia_ . . . and I hate to admit it but if I saw them I’d subsequently spray ‘em and the entire house with a can of Mortein or Raid to ensure our safety.
such a beautiful spider. I love the red and black bands on its legs. And the little white spot on its butt is adorable! Thank you for spreading the good word about these amazing creatures!
As an Australian myself & having grown up dodging these spiders this was a truly fascinating video. Obviously I was wrong to fear these spiders. Thanks for the info.
Cheers! I fell for the myths for a long time too. And even when I was filming this video, there was a little voice in my head saying “what if you’re wrong”
@@BugsandBiology all Aussie’s grew up with that spider chart on the fridge that showed the White Tail as the third most dangerous after the Funnel Web & the Red Back.
I was tagged by one of these on the top of my foot. I stupidly decided to use my rowing machine with bare feet so it was my own fault. It was sat inside the foot loop. It wasnt particularly painful, more like an ant bite that i barely noticed, but then felt very itchy the rest of the day.. It did sadly get infected over the next week, even after cleaning the. Some antibiotics/antibacterial cream from the doc quickly cleared it up. I always assumed it was secondary bacteria that got into then wound (being a pomme living in VIC i wasnt aware of the rumours of their bite etc). Great informative post. Appreciate your work and efforts. 😊
Cheers! Yeah I learned the hard way what infections can do. Scratched a mosquito bite on school camp when I was in Y8 and it turned into a horrible wound that persisted for weeks. Looked more like a snakebite at its worst. Never scratched any bite/sting ever again.
I was overly scared of these too up until I started being curious about spiders. I thought since they like to hide that the dangers are the spider getting trapped in a shoe etc. I found one of these stuck in the bottom of the sink today, cupped him but accidentally hurt his leg, and looking for a place to take him... Thinking a tree is appropriate! Definitely had bites looking like that, I've always assumed they were from mosquitoes or ants. I've never been bitten by a spider as far as I know, but now I wouldn't be surprised if I've had spider bites.
i actually cant be leave how hard it was to get bit and how little effects there are thank you for clearing up some myths but i have heard its the parasites that live aroud the fangs are what cause the necrotic effects. and if not the white tip then what is causing it
The “bacteria on fangs” idea gets thrown around a lot, but if that were the cause as opposed to the venom, you’d still expect there to be at least one well-documented case of necrosis from a white tail bite. Plus spiders routinely clean their fangs. As it stands, secondary infections (such as from scratching) and misdiagnosis of unrelated wounds are likely to be the principal cause for supposed necrotic white tail bites.
Very interesting. I found this video after catching a white-tail spider having heard tales of its terror since I was a kid. Very surprising to see the opposite is probably true. I may let the little guy go now.
Great Work Mate , looks like a small Blister , I have seen about a dozen around the house here on the Central Coast of NSW. As long as they dont come to where I sleep ,and get in my bed , I leave them alone!
The Mandela Effect is a funny thing, maybe many of us got consciously shifted to a parallel universe where this spider isn't venomous. Hope you didn't injure this spider, important to respect all creatures great and small 😇
I was correct, it was a White-tailed spider 😄 You know spiders are so reluctant to bite. Even I’ve learned that after sleeping the last couple nights with a Huntsman spider in my room. There is nothing to worry about as they don’t even intend of biting me in the night😁🕷👍
We have them in New Zealand - I was bitten one night and had skin become sticky before falling away. It left me with several sets of puncture marks that eventually scabbed like mad before healing over
I suppose. But it’s easy enough to recognise the small number of medically significant species. After that, you can be confident that anything else doesn’t pose a risk.
Thanks for your video and finally my girlfriend and I can have a good sleep. We found this spider in our living room at 11pm. When she googled it, we found some terrifying images... We looked for the spider for 1.5 hours without getting anything. I thought i was about to get a sleepless night, until i saw this video...
One of those little sods bit me. Not that bad. Very itchy. Slight swelling. Took a day for the effects to go away. The Spider didn't fare so well. I needed to measure the fangs under the microscope, to match it to the holes in my finger. just to be sure. I did swab the wound with disinfectant and squeeze the blood out just in case.
Iv found 6 in my house in nz this season so far and had over 20 bites sprayed the house bombed my car still getting bites that make me vomit feel rubbish!!! Bites take months to heal!! Why would this spider keep going to me can find it arrrgh we just moved into this house and it wasn’t lived in for year
Spiders are my only real fear though in the last few years I've grown quite curious about them. Even coming close to picking a few up, though I'm not there yet I guess.
I love how you show the lengths this spider went to avoid biting you, it just wasn't interested until you gave it no other option. Keep making great videos and fighting misinformation!
Cheers!
I think showing how reluctant it was to bite is, if anything, even more important than the mildness of the bite itself when it comes to demonstrating how inoffensive these animals are.
You won't get that kind of reluctance from a jumping ant, those things are pretty aggressive, and they do hurt a bit.
ruclips.net/video/_vq2d44Rv-U/видео.htmlsi=ly3nV1aHtwbc-xLG
Okay.
@@BugsandBiology mother of 4 lost her leg 11 months ago from a white tail it on 9news Australia for full story
@@Skankhunt1Already seen it. Once again, there is no way to rule out secondary infection as a possible cause of the effects.
In the meantime, I’ll continue to regard actual scientific studies as more reliable sources than news segments.
A lot of staph infections I’ve seen get miss identified as spider bites or a benign spider bite gets infected with staph and suddenly a common house spider has a “necrotic bite”
Yeah exactly. Misdiagnosis is a pretty regular thing with so-called spider bites.
What a terrifying spider. I've had mosquito bites worse than that.
This really shows how shy and reluctant to bite lampona really is
Indeed! I thought that’s actually the most important part, not the bite itself.
I never thought a whitetail can even bite a human
Maybe it was just being well behaved because it was on camera? 😂
@@BugsandBiology since you have a very detailed knowledge of things like the effects of bites from spiders you might know the answer to this question, would I be correct in saying that white tailed spiders do not deserve their reputation for being very dangerous spiders ? . I actually got bitten by a white tailed spider while I was sleeping at my unit and it really didn't do much damage to me at all. The only noticeable effects that I had from being bitten were the puncture marks on my leg where I got bitten and a small itchy lump around the site where I got bitten, but apart from those symptoms nothing happened to me and I was completely fine and okay
@@craigpater6278I heard mixed stories about the white tails in NZ. I read it may be a case of some being allergic to the bite.
Great video, I’ve seen way too many people talk about the “effects” of Lampona bites. Awesome to see someone finally debunk the myths.
Fantastic video man! White-tailed spiders aren’t super well known in the US, but they’re a species that I’ve always liked and I’m happy to see such a thoughtful and educational video about them, there aren’t many of those out there. I’m almost surprised that the bite was as weak as it was, but her reluctance to bite was the thing that stuck out to me. Really solid piece, nothing felt too long and I appreciate the level of depth that you approach these topics with.
Your demonstration makes a valid point in that these are usually placid and retiring. You’ll have a higher number of encounters in New Zealand where these are now ubiquitous. It wasn’t unusual to see 10 per day when I was in the building trade there. They will quickly occupy new buildings and like to lay-up under roofing. I have also seen these exhibit a threat display when attending their eggs, usually around November, but some of them appear almost dormant, including a very large one I found under roofing - probably 45mm leg to leg with an abdomen and cephalothorax about 25mm. A colleague of mine was bitten on the back of the thumb and we observed a string of ulcers tracking up his wrist over several days. We also saw the crushed spider. This was quickly curtailed by topical antibiotics and aloe-vera. So as much as the ‘experts’ deny and invoke misidentification there is likely a mechanism not yet understood that enables reactions.
This was also mentioned by a NZ medical doctor in regard to many of his elderly and likely compromised patients.
I no longer have the source material for this.
At one time I encountered so many of these daily that I contacted the DSIR entomology department and received exactly the same information as you present. But they did caution me against the large centipedes which were also present and said they can be medically significant.
Do I think that these spiders are incredibly toxic? No, probably not. But I can not discount that which I have personally observed and will shake out clothing and shoes and generally discourage them taking up residence.
BTW: I have only seen 5 in the 12 years I have lived in West Australia, so population density is much higher in NZ where they have been resident since around 1897, having thought to have first arrived on a shipment of timber to Waiwera, north of Auckland. They are now established throughout the North and South Islands. Probably due to having no natural predators as is typical with introduced species in NZ.
I think secondary infections are always a possibility, as they are with any untreated wound.
I once had a mosquito bite get horribly infected and end up looking like a snakebite, but that was nothing to do with what the mosquito itself was directly capable of.
As for the giant centipedes, NZ giant centipedes are Cormocephalus rubriceps, and Cormocephalus in general don’t seem to be all that venomous.
@@BugsandBiology I've seen a secondary infection happen after a whitetail bite I've witnessed. The bite area got a bit oozy after a few days and it was treated easily with iodine, but it did take a few weeks to heal completely, which i found pretty strange. My ex use to sit at her computer with her leg under her, i know how weird how some women sit. Where she had folded her leg under her there was a hole the size of a 50c coin which the spider filled up pretty well, as she felt a slight pinch she got up and i saw a whitetail sitting in the hole. I said to her you're fine whitetail bites are harmless, until a few days later when i saw the bite area. I doubt it was the spider that caused the infection, i think it was more the old nasty chair but you could clearly see the 2 little holes where she was bitten.
You sir have an underated channel , no BS it's a shame the algorithm doesn't serve you well. Keep going
Have been seeing decent activity on the channel as of late. Could it be better? For sure, but I definitely gotta be happy with how far I’ve come.
@@BugsandBiology oh sweet you replied! Tell me I'm handsome...itll make my day, I need to know I still have chick slaying qualities....
I think the no BS part is why the algorithm doesn't serve him well. The algorithm is not made to give the viewer what they necessarily want and would enjoy watching, it is instead designed to prioritize things that catch your attention enough to watch.
Great video man!
Cheers Jack!
Means a lot coming from you
This is similar to here in america, where people blame the brown recluse on absolutely any wound you get. Some states don't even have the recluse and they are still blamed and every unknown brown spider being labeled one.
Yeah it’s basically become a meme at this point. Every brown spider is a recluse.
Just like how here in Australia, every dark coloured spider is a funnel-web.
Thanks for yet another amazing informative video! :) I'm pretty far away from Australia, but I remember many years ago seeing a youtube video on these spiders and it definitely made them seem like this absolutely terrifying lil spider. How this spider was one of the reasons in Australia it is a must to tap your shoes to check for spiders. Videos like that fed so much worse in my fear at the time.
Thankfully there is now channels like yours- that have not only great information and based on fact, but also the visual to show that spiders don't come even remotely near the monsters many of us tend to believe. My fear used to be so irrational I used to think relocating spiders outside would make them come back inside and want revenge and would for sure then bite me. I hated something had to be killed in order for me to have ease, so I decided to start learning more about them because I believe fear more often than not comes about when we do not understand something. I really appreciate channels like yours as they have been a tremendous help in not only overcoming my phobia, but also learning to even appreciate and see beauty and cuteness in spiders. I also love to share videos like yours with friends that also struggle with fear but are open to overcoming said fear. (Also I hope my rambling made sense, English is not my native language)
3:15 It was way back in the '80s that scientists made the discovery about white tail spider's venom. However, it was also found that some white tail spiders carry a virus that does cause necrosis. The same virus can be found in ground soil, in certain areas. That's another reason why we should always wash our hands after digging in the garden.
(This was mentioned on the JJJ radio Thursday science phone-in show, a few years ago.)
I also know from experience that white tail spiders are a bit aggressive. One two occasions, I've had a white tail spider follow me in a room. One time in a lounge room, where the spider was on the wall. It actually jumped off the wall and onto my back. I don't know if it bit me, though.
The other time was in the bathroom. I was standing in one area, while the spider stared at me from the ceiling. When I moved, the spider turned and followed me. When I was in the shower, I looked up and the white tail spider had followed me across the room and it was staring down at me from the ceiling.
I wouldn't call that aggressive, that just sounds more inquisitive. Jumping spiders do things similar to that, and they certainly aren't aggressive. Was probably just curious
Thankyou so much for putting yourself through that for the sake of education. My family has always had a severe fear of white tails, so I've also been terrified of them the most throughout my life. Your videos have helped me the most with my fear of spiders, and it's about to be "white tails invading my home every other night" season so you've made this at a convenient time for me 😅
I was stunned at how difficult it was to get him to even bite you properly. My little pet wolf spider is basically a savage (seriously he's like a chihuahua 😂) and I was really expecting the white tail to be the same!
Another great video as always, looking forward to the next one 😊
that's awesome
What always gets me is how much these spiders need to be prompted to bite
NZ is swarming with Badumnas, probably the most common spider you'll see here. Not surprisingly Lamponas are very common, also not surprisingly people are shi+ scared of them, believe they are 'poisonous', will freak out and empty an entire can of flyspray on the poor little buggers.
Ironically I've noticed that Lamponas are amazingly resilient, often surviving said fly spray and even the boot.
I wonder if the belief in the potency of the bite of the white tailed spider comes from it being a spider hunter.
"If it kills other spiders, it must therefore be more venomous."
I also suspect that many of the medically significant reactions to spider bites are either allergic reactions or infection due to bacteria left on the spider's fangs from its last meal. But I am certainly no expert.
It’s likely that secondary infections are from other external sources, as spiders are very meticulous cleaners.
And yeah, I have seen that assumption about spiders being more venomous than their prey. Have heard people try to justify the myth about daddy long legs being extremely venomous by saying they’re able to kill a Redback, and must therefore be more toxic.
Well said cause that's exactly what happens
@@BugsandBiologythey do seem to have more "dirty" fangs than other spiders? There's no doubt people have bacterial infections after being bitten. I don't think they are all lying nor do I think they have the venom to cause serious necrosis so that leaves the possibility they have a higher than average ability to cause infection with their bites?
What's funny about that is a metric ton of spider hunters aren't particularly venomous to humans.
(Like there's obviously medically significant ones) but you also have huntsmans, most tarantulas, wolf's, ect that for the most part aren't medically significant (there might be a tarantulas species I'm blanking on, there's so many but I don't believe there's a medically significant tarantulas, do correct me on this if I'm wrong)
Most spider hunters rely more on size, speed, and strength to bully the other spider as in the spider world no matter how venomous you are 1 bite normally does it, so you'd rather be bigger and stronger and more able to get your bite off first.
@@lunaeons45 I actually live in Adelaide which is full of white tips and I've seen them kill larger black house spiders numerous times and once saw one stalk a huge huntsman across a warehouse floor before biting it from behind and eventually killing it! It did not get to feast on the huntsman because someone came along with a sweeper and pushed the body outside and the white tip ran off!
It’s like the brown recluse spider here in the States, once in a while someone has a bad reaction to the venom but most people don’t have much reaction at all.
The number of times i heard an Aussie say something similar to "it is true! My aunts arm fell off after a white tail bite". This belief will never go away, as most people are immune to evidence, logic and reason.
People do get extremely attached to their anecdotes. It’s kinda shocking how defensive they can get if you express any scepticism.
Someone had to do it. Of course it was you!
Yeah we do see these a lot in our homes here down south. I've only ever encountered a couple in my garden. The majority I bump into inside the house. Found a juvenile one yesterday inside one of my cats bed blankets.
They are the most frequently encountered spider I find in the house. Second place is daddy long legs followed by jumping spiders and the occasional huntsman.
I've noticed the fear mongering articles about amputations run by the media like to highlight the (UNCONFIRMED) white tail spider bite in the headline, but upon reading these articles the common thread shared by these stories seems to be the victim having diabetes; which puts them at higher risk of dangerous infections from ANY cut, scratch or bite.
Always clean your wounds people!
If you inadvertently scratch any kind of bug bite, make sure you clean it after too. And scrub your hands and under your finger nails while you're at it.
Even the false widow was more eager to bite me when it bit my thumb after I accidently mistook it for a piece of fluff in the dark in my bed. The False Widow of England has a similar largely exaggerated reputation as having necrotic bites as the White Tailed Spider, I experienced extremely minor symptoms of a throbbing thumb which subsided after 2 hours. No necrotic lesions either!
I found one of these in my kitchen early this morning! Great video dude, thanks for clearing that up for us all.
I'm from the UK and came across 2 whitetails during my visit to Melbourne recently, they were so chill and I felt so much more comfortable using cup-and-paper on the one in my bed than anything at home
They’re such passive little spiders! Genuinely have no clue where the rumours about them being super aggressive come from.
The closest I've ever got to the necrotic bites White-Tails are feared for is an unknown insect bite that I scratched and scratched and scratched until it turned into a slightly pussy wound about the size of a 20 cent piece... which eventually got less and less severe and is now just a faint scar. So... clean your wounds guys and please try not to scratch them... I know it's very hard to not scratch but you can at least try.
Can definitely concur.
I scratched a mosquito bite on school camp when I was 13 and after a few days it looked more like a snakebite. Never scratched any bites after that.
Thanks!
The horror story's I've heard are from people who had an allergic reaction to the bite. The same as bee stings are harmless to most people but can kill the few unlucky ones that go into anaphylactic shock.
I’d say secondary infection is a bigger issue than allergy, though of course any wound can get infected, not just spider bites.
Keep up the good work bug man😎
We have similar looking species here in America called parsons spider and most of them have a white heart 🤍 on their rumps. But I hear you there are so many horror stories about spiders here as well and pretty much all of them are nonsense and probably weren’t even spider bites. People unfortunately love to blow things way out of proportion. Thanks for all the great work you do and love that you set those stories straight.
I love this keep up the great work!! I find it fascinating that it took a lot for this spider to bite you, people assume that spiders want to bite you when really they want nothing to do with you. I love this channel keep it up!
Yeah I was contemplating cutting some of the failed attempts so the video didn't drag, but then I realised they were the most important part of the message; not that the bite itself was mild, but that it took so much effort to make the spider bite in the first place.
7:22 That Jimmy CARR laugh caught me off guard lmao, great vid' buddy !
Thank You for going to such great lengths to bust the myth about White Tail Bites and the toxicity of it's venom. It was actually reluctant to bite and You literally had to coax it to bite.
Necrosis occurs as a result of infection at the wound site, and the only determinant factors are the size of the puncture wound and the likelihood that spider has recently come in contact with a pathogen. It's sort of shocking that in the murder bug capital of the world, it's not common knowledge that any puncture wound from any insect, reptile, or even dropbears (especially dropbears...) can become necrotic. Hek mate, even a Bogan with a sharp tooth can give ya a staph infection that might cost you a finger.
It’s less to do with what the spider may have come in contact with (spiders are very clean animals), and more to do with whatever may be on your skin or under your nails.
Also it’s a bit of a stretch to call Australia the “murder bug capital of the world”. Asian, African and South American bugs are in another league entirely.
@@BugsandBiology fair enough. But you're fighting an uphill battle in the war against popular opinion. I mean, your birds had to evolve back into dinosaurs just to stand a chance.
Haha, not really. Giant flightless birds have been a recurring thing for tens of millions of years on multiple continents - I mean, just look at terror birds.
Australian animals as a whole are insanely overrated.
@@BugsandBiology yeah but rest of the world's flightless birds didn't get the AI upgrade. Cassowary know they're dinosaurs...
@@ZennExileIt’s also worth noting that ostriches kill more people every year than cassowaries have in recorded history. And both documented cassowary related fatalities are kinda underwhelming.
Good job mate!
We get maybe 1 a week in the house, probably looking for all our black house spiders around the windows.
South Gippsland seems to have an endless supply of them.
Thank you. Very interesting! I'd never heard of this species. Glad you were NOT hurt.
They’re notorious in Australia. Probably feared as much as funnel-webs.
Great, informative video mate! I remember A Current Affairs and Today Tonight running terrible, fear mongering stories on the White Tail.
Never heard of this spider... But now that I see it I distinctly remember that my second cousin's ex-boyfriend's uncle's manager was bitten by such a spider and then she instantly imploded into a black hole which consumed the entire galaxy! Scary stuff.
(Very pretty & polite spider though! And wonderful narration as usual.)
Seeing this just tells me that someone getting bitten by these spiders says more about them being a complete psychopath than the spider at all.
The main Way people get bitten by spiders comes from either them moving in their sleep, or putting clothes on without checking for spiders.
Which ends up pinning the spider to the person and gives the spider no choice, but also the person doing it no real fault either.
Just an unfortunate situation, like how we wouldn't blame a dog for say biting us if we slept on top of it and squished it
This video is so underrated! People should give you more credit, you've become the next coyote Peterson, getting bitten willingly by a whitetail is admirable. Also, i have a question, can these things jump? I recently had one on my roof and i was terrified that it would jump on me.
Most Spiders/and other Inverts or Insects have been given a bad name by the media when in fact they are not even half as bad as they are made out to be 🤔
Precisely. And that applies even to the ones that are actually medically significant as well.
@@BugsandBiology 100% agree Just love my Tarantulas and Spiders and keep the AWESOME videos coming nice one 😉👌
It’s a frustrating myth, especially down here in Victoria where they are so common. Explaining that they are harmless, beneficial even, given their role in spider population control will generally garner looks of disbelief.
Yeah it’s gotten so established that it’s almost common “knowledge”.
Plus many people get very passionate and defensive if you call their anecdotes into question.
Tried to pick one up and everyone around me started screaming random rubbish about it.
It’s insane how scared of them people are.
This actually makes me really curious. My mum is Terrified of White Tails, cause years back, she was bitten by something in her sleep, and the reaction she had was blamed on said Spider. Her face swelled up and bruised so badly it looked like she'd been punched. It would go down, then a few days later, swell up again in the same place. But if these spiders don't have that effect, I really wonder what actually did bite her. Or if maybe she was just allergic to whatever bit her.
Sounds like an allergic reaction which is possible with any venom
Really enjoyed this, also the care used to not harm the spider. It's taken years to knockdown the white tail myths, now we carefully relocate any we find in the house or just leave them be. One thing I'm unsure of is why some here are larger with an all black rounded thorax, while others are smaller with the distinctive black arrow thorax tipped white.
Is it possible some of the more stocky spiders you’re seeing are black house spiders? They seem to match your description.
That or they’re female white tails (the one in this vid is a male) which are a bit more robust than males, albeit still with a distinctive white spot.
@@BugsandBiology I've seen some bigger ones like that though they still have the white on the end. On the road to Tuena there is a single lane bridge that crosses the Abercrombie river and some camp grounds just around the corner, at night all the spiders come out including those larger white tail spiders. Great spot if you're into spiders.
Well done, and way to congratulate that spider he was most certainly way too unwilling to assert any type of aggression in spite of your near constant provocation! Well done from the US my brother, you're doing an excellent job bringing awareness to some truly phenomenal creatures we share the planet with. Keep the content rolling!
He really was inoffensive, wasn’t he? I couldn’t have picked a better spider to showcase how passive they are.
I work in pest control in Perth Australia and I pick up white tails and Redbacks. I try to educate people that these spiders don't deliberately bite unless provoked. It's good people like you are showing these videos as it proves my point too.
Thanks!
A lot of times, education can feel like an uphill battle. Which is why I think actual demonstrations can be important.
When the spider bit you for the first time, it made me jump and scared me 😂
I really appreciate the careful and exquisite work you do in your videos.
Very detailed with specificity.
What do you think about Steatoda grossa? We have a lot of these spiders at home.
I have them (or something similar) at home too.
They take care of any escaped feeder insects.
Here in NZ, I was inadvertently bitten rescuing one from the shower. It bit me on the side of my hand when it was pressed against me, trying to transfer it to a surface. My skin was rather tight and itchy for a few days, but no worse than that.
My god I love this spider's colors its crazy to think people are so afraid of these wonderful specimens. Its always a treat watching your vids man thank you!
Cheers! They really are quite a pretty spider.
Yeah myths can spread like wildfire, especially when fear is added to the mix.
White-tails are probably feared about as much as redbacks and funnel-webs in Australia.
Myths are pretty wide spread here in the US about a lot of species of spiders unfortunately. @@BugsandBiology
I recall an article from this year claiming a woman was bitten on the foot by a white-tail and consequently had to have her leg amputated due to a severe case of necrosis. But I'm wondering if it really happened due to other complications, and not necessarily a direct cause of the bite itself.
Yeah it’d almost certainly be other complications. Heck, the initial cause may not have even been a spider. It’s commonplace for unknown infections to be blamed on spiders.
I literally own some of the most cranky spiders out there, closest ive had to anything chasing me is when they run away from me in my direction. Some spiders pick a direction and run because they cant see very well, sometimes they choose wrong and its your direction.
These white tails are really cute actually
I do much appreciate this vid bro because I’ve been so scared of these spiders and it looks like for nothing…i used to go out of my way to kill these on sight but i will no more and let the beautiful creatures live…thank you 👍🏾I’m from vic where they are a plenty so ill be sharing this with my family and friends
That’s awesome! Just another example of education triumphing over fear.
I dont have the guts to watch the actual bite, but I respect your courage and appreciate the info.
The down-right forcing of the spider to bite you made me chuckle, such an unaggressive animal. Thanks for making these informative & clear-cut videos. I feel like my only remaining fear of the land down under is the waters edge. Although perhaps it's best to avoid that bite test.
When I lived in Cairns (far enough north to be within box jellyfish/crocodile range), I was scared to go within ten metres of the water. So I know what the fear is like.
Thankfully, the beaches are much safer in most parts of the country.
Has arm fallen off two months later?
Poor little buddy. I know your heart is in the right place, showing the true nature of our little eight legged buddies. This is the fourth video I've seen from you. I don't think you need to push that individual to annoyance to prove your point, you have science behind you. Keep up the good work, bubbas.
I know the science is behind me, but an actual demonstration has a lot more potential to change people’s perceptions than just citing a couple papers.
@@BugsandBiology I reread my comment and meant no disrespect. I said poor little buddy, sympathizing with our little spider friend. I know that the demonstration was for the benefit of both our species and that he was not hurt in the end, but I can empathize with having my day messed with just to prove a point. I hope for the best for you and your channel. Have a great day, boss.
I love that most spiders try to not to bite unless provoked too much.
Being a little scared of white tails (just their look and movement), what did that little bite feel like around the midway point? You recoiled a bit, did it hurt quite a lot when the fangs went in? Could you describe it? Just super nervous about getting bitten unexpectedly one day, I see them a fair bit...
Felt like a minor pin-prick initially.
@@BugsandBiology Thanks for replying! It looked like you recoiled pretty heavily at first, was that mainly just as it was unexpected? Sorry for all the questions
Just unexpected, yes. Plus I was zoomed in a lot, so even small movements stood out.
@@BugsandBiology Thanks mate, all the best with the growth of your channel!
I swear that they're on the pest control posters in Aus', matched with other medically significant spiders so when you inevitably see one in your house you freak out and call the pest control people. All a marketing move. But thanks for doing this for science!
Yeah that’s a major reason why pest control sites are terrible places to get info from.
More people scared of bugs = better business for them.
I can’t believe it, you obviously cloned yourself so this vid could be uploaded after succumbing to the necrosis.
Darn, you blew my cover!
Probably would’ve been a smarter idea to have that clone go to uni on my behalf instead…
@@BugsandBiology oh well, you already know how to do it now, shouldn’t be too hard to make a second one for that
There is a theory that some white tailed spiders may have flesh eating bacteria on their fangs. A case in point was a South Australian woman who was bitten on the hand while gardening. She was wearing gloves and when bitten took them off to discover a large white tail inside. She immediately went and washed the bite site only to see a 10 cent size piece of skin slough off. Over the following days and weeks this developed into a large necrotic wound that eventually required several attempts at skin grafts before they finally took.
The issue with the bacteria explanation is that the studies concerning confirmed bite records were not limited to any particular cause; regardless of whether the supposed necrosis is caused by venom or bacteria, you’d expect at least one of the documented bites to have shown such symptoms, yet none did.
I live in the Pacific Northwest of the US and hear the fear is the brown recluse spider which doesn't even live here but yet it's been diagnosed as the reason for a lot of these wounds that was some study has shown has been actually MRSA or staph infections
Thank you for making this video I’ve been trying to find one where someone holds and takes a bite from this spider for a long time
Yeah, I figured that I could address the myth verbally - the research is there after all, but actions speak louder than words, so I opted for a bite demonstration as well.
That spider had zero interest in biting you, even under extreme duress. Thankyou for this video it has been very informative and hopefully clears up some of the false information out there.
Cheers!
I actually thought the spider’s reluctance to bite was probably more relevant to alleviating fear than the mildness of said bite.
that spider looked like he was screaming "LEAVE ME ALONE PLEASE I BEG YOU"
I got bitten by a white tail a couple times a week ago ,not for the first time... I roled on it at night ,it kinda made a little blister that poped and it melted away a little dibbit out of my skin but nothing to bad. I get that they overhyped how bad they can be but at same time I've picked up a peace of wood with no shirt and just shorts on and ended up with 4 big white tails crawling over my chest , if you got bitten by a whole nest of them maybe 5 times and you weren't the healthiest person to start off with you might have a few problems and need to see s doctor......its seems to depend on the person like i usually have like i said from them ,but I've seen two people with some quiet bad saws and infections from them .....im just saying it might still be a little miss understood , for spiders i quite like the white tail its s hunter like me
These things are ubiquitous in Auckland, New Zealand. You’ll see them virtually every day in semi-urban areas in summer. Rumours persisted that their venom was dangerous not owing to its negligible toxicity but a bacterium that ‘infected’ their venom sacs.
Yeah I’ve heard. Either way, irrespective of the mechanisms behind the apparent necrotic effects (venom or bacteria) you’d think case studies would have found at least one instance of it occurring, especially given how prevalent the anecdotes are.
@@BugsandBiology - in a weird way (or perhaps in a completely bog standard predictable way), this really does confirm how pervasive any kind of bias can be. I still ‘regard’ these things as ‘dangerous’ even though I know they’re not, and you’re right about the ‘friend of a friend’ thing - my godfather / ‘uncle’ was bitten by one of these whilst gardening (so the family claim), and his arm ‘swelled up’, but no first hand confirmation of why they attributed that symptom to the bite of that particular spider even if they happened to see it after the event.
I can remember capturing these things and putting ‘em in little plastic vials to take to my entomologist friend (then working at a video store), to brag about how I’d caught a lethal spider like I was that Julian Sands in _Arachnophobia_ . . . and I hate to admit it but if I saw them I’d subsequently spray ‘em and the entire house with a can of Mortein or Raid to ensure our safety.
such a beautiful spider. I love the red and black bands on its legs. And the little white spot on its butt is adorable! Thank you for spreading the good word about these amazing creatures!
They are quite a pretty spider honestly. And I like their fairly unique elongated shape too.
As an Australian myself & having grown up dodging these spiders this was a truly fascinating video. Obviously I was wrong to fear these spiders. Thanks for the info.
Cheers!
I fell for the myths for a long time too.
And even when I was filming this video, there was a little voice in my head saying “what if you’re wrong”
@@BugsandBiology all Aussie’s grew up with that spider chart on the fridge that showed the White Tail as the third most dangerous after the Funnel Web & the Red Back.
I live on the east coast and know 2 people who have been bitten by the white tail. And yes their skin started rotting!
Thank you so much for showing real information
Cheers.
Can be pretty hard to find proper info on the internet. Especially as far as spiders are concerned.
I was tagged by one of these on the top of my foot. I stupidly decided to use my rowing machine with bare feet so it was my own fault. It was sat inside the foot loop. It wasnt particularly painful, more like an ant bite that i barely noticed, but then felt very itchy the rest of the day.. It did sadly get infected over the next week, even after cleaning the. Some antibiotics/antibacterial cream from the doc quickly cleared it up. I always assumed it was secondary bacteria that got into then wound (being a pomme living in VIC i wasnt aware of the rumours of their bite etc). Great informative post. Appreciate your work and efforts. 😊
Cheers!
Yeah I learned the hard way what infections can do. Scratched a mosquito bite on school camp when I was in Y8 and it turned into a horrible wound that persisted for weeks. Looked more like a snakebite at its worst.
Never scratched any bite/sting ever again.
I was overly scared of these too up until I started being curious about spiders. I thought since they like to hide that the dangers are the spider getting trapped in a shoe etc. I found one of these stuck in the bottom of the sink today, cupped him but accidentally hurt his leg, and looking for a place to take him... Thinking a tree is appropriate!
Definitely had bites looking like that, I've always assumed they were from mosquitoes or ants. I've never been bitten by a spider as far as I know, but now I wouldn't be surprised if I've had spider bites.
I 110% agree about Jurassic World Dominion!
Thanks for dispelling the myths, B&B.
Great video mate! Hopefully this goes viral and educates many 'strayan folk 🤞
i actually cant be leave how hard it was to get bit and how little effects there are thank you for clearing up some myths but i have heard its the parasites that live aroud the fangs are what cause the necrotic effects. and if not the white tip then what is causing it
The “bacteria on fangs” idea gets thrown around a lot, but if that were the cause as opposed to the venom, you’d still expect there to be at least one well-documented case of necrosis from a white tail bite. Plus spiders routinely clean their fangs.
As it stands, secondary infections (such as from scratching) and misdiagnosis of unrelated wounds are likely to be the principal cause for supposed necrotic white tail bites.
Very interesting. I found this video after catching a white-tail spider having heard tales of its terror since I was a kid. Very surprising to see the opposite is probably true. I may let the little guy go now.
See alot of people exaggerate how deadly most spiders are
These guys are quite hard to catch at midnight in your bedroom
Great Work Mate , looks like a small Blister , I have seen about a dozen around the house here on the Central Coast of NSW. As long as they dont come to where I sleep ,and get in my bed , I leave them alone!
The Mandela Effect is a funny thing, maybe many of us got consciously shifted to a parallel universe where this spider isn't venomous. Hope you didn't injure this spider, important to respect all creatures great and small 😇
I was correct, it was a White-tailed spider 😄
You know spiders are so reluctant to bite. Even I’ve learned that after sleeping the last couple nights with a Huntsman spider in my room. There is nothing to worry about as they don’t even intend of biting me in the night😁🕷👍
My mum got necrosis from one of these had to get the local area cut away.?
Could’ve been secondary infection. Or a misdiagnosis - it’s not uncommon for random wounds to get identified as spider bites.
@@BugsandBiology that does sound very plausible, I reckon it may have been secondary infection,
We have them in New Zealand - I was bitten one night and had skin become sticky before falling away. It left me with several sets of puncture marks that eventually scabbed like mad before healing over
The scariest part is not knowing if its poisonous or not
I suppose. But it’s easy enough to recognise the small number of medically significant species. After that, you can be confident that anything else doesn’t pose a risk.
Thanks for your video and finally my girlfriend and I can have a good sleep. We found this spider in our living room at 11pm. When she googled it, we found some terrifying images... We looked for the spider for 1.5 hours without getting anything. I thought i was about to get a sleepless night, until i saw this video...
No worries! Glad I was able to alleviate your fear a little!
Love the "spider biting music " in the background.
I came here looking for information after finding one in my bed at midnight. I'll be able to sleep well after seeing this, thank you 🥰
One of those little sods bit me. Not that bad. Very itchy. Slight swelling. Took a day for the effects to go away. The Spider didn't fare so well. I needed to measure the fangs under the microscope, to match it to the holes in my finger. just to be sure. I did swab the wound with disinfectant and squeeze the blood out just in case.
Iv found 6 in my house in nz this season so far and had over 20 bites sprayed the house bombed my car still getting bites that make me vomit feel rubbish!!! Bites take months to heal!! Why would this spider keep going to me can find it arrrgh we just moved into this house and it wasn’t lived in for year
RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!
Spiders are my only real fear though in the last few years I've grown quite curious about them. Even coming close to picking a few up, though I'm not there yet I guess.
My pet spider's name is Terra. She is an acanthoscurria geniculata. A brazillian whiteknee tarantula.
just remember guys. is there is one whittail theres almost always another.
Yes, that’s how populations work. Generally more than one individual of a given species exists…
Well said mate 👍, so people don't judge a spider by it's cover 😊
Another great video :)
My mum got bitten by one and had a one inch hole in her face for a year
I cannot believe you want him to bite... and he won't. Damn dude.. you're crazy. Just watching him clamp down on your arm..
Not only was this a great educational video but what topped it off was the Jimmy Carr laugh 😂
Haha, that’s something of a recurring gag on this channel.
@@BugsandBiology love itttt mate
Are white tails really that venomous.