The Sydney funnel-web spider, found around Australia’s biggest city, is widely called the deadliest spider in the world. It’s about the size of a large grape and shiny black. Its fangs are bigger than those of some snakes and tough enough to pierce a fingernail, a leather shoe or a soft toy.
The spider digs a burrow lined with silk that flares out at the top like a funnel - which is where its name comes from. It waits at the bottom for an insect to brush the trip lines, then leaps out and grabs the prey. Male funnel-webs wander around looking for mates and sometimes fall into swimming pools.
The truly amazing part is that the venom is most dangerous to primates like us, but barely bothers many other mammals such as cats and dogs. Australian scientists made an antivenom from milked spider venom back in 1981, and ever since, nobody has died from a funnel-web bite. Hospitals across Australia keep doses ready, just in case.
