Selenocosmia crassipes i read on net its very poisonous

[scotttaylor]

hi was on the spider shop and sore a lovly spider Selenocosmia crassipes but when i did a net serch it sed that it can kill a dog with its vemun dose any 1 have it as i love the idea of a spider that can drag a rat home for tea would love to studdy its movements like i do with my chile rose lol ok it dont move much lol but it diging a lot coollllllllllllllllll

[Phil Rea]

They are nice spiders. Mine's not at all shy

Got mine from Lee @ Spidershop ages ago when the first batch of them came in.



It's a lot bigger now, and a lot darker in colouration.

p.s. It's likely to be renamed to Phlogius crassipes at some point by the way.

[Nicola Dolby]

Hi Scott, Phil. I don't know much but I can assure you that Selenocosmia sp. are not highly venemous to humans at all. All spiders carry venom, when it comes to tarantulas the ones to watch out for are Poecilotheria sp. and in general African theraphosids (notably Stromatopelma, Pterinochilus). No one has ever died from a tarantula bite and fingers crossed no-one ever will. Elsewhere comment has been made as to the toxicity of Haplopelma sp., especially H. schmidti, but not Australian therasophids. If the article you are refering to is the one I'm thinking of (happened in a kitchen in Townsville a few months ago) I think that was a Selenotypus plumipes, but I stand to be corrected. Truth is your friendly little Avic could well do damage to a dog or cat with a bite, Never mind a giant like an S. crassipes or S plumipes. Trust me they are beautiful spiders and if you want one don't hesitate to buy one. As for getting bitten don't worry. They stridulate (hiss) if you really upset them so you know what's coming. Thats how they got the name 'Whistling Spider'. For more look up www.theata.org Personally I think Australian Tarantulas are the some of the best there are. !!!!!

[wesley flower]

i must disagree with you nicola (sorry) i have been bitten by an immature selenocosmia javanensis which did give a toxic reaction. the selenocosmia spp have a neuro-toxic vemon, post bite the area of the bite will become extremly sensitive (even to air movement) (it is agony), this last for about 5 days i had cold and flu like symptoms as well. no signs of tissue nacrosis tho. in answer to the question selenocosmia is not deadly or carry a fatal bite but the little bugger can and do bite with out warning so be careful dont get bitten. kindest regards
wesley

[Nicola Dolby]

Hi Wesley,
Yes all tarantulas bite, usually it has about the strength of a bee sting. Selenocosmia bites are as you describe but the pain and swelling (if there is any) usually lasts only a couple of days. The kind of envenomation I was refering to was the kind which leaves you flat out for a couple of weeks, required a trip to Accident and Emergency (at least one) and possibly a short stay in hospital. Of course anyone can get an allergic reaction to the venom, there is not enough scientific info to tell who is allergic to what type of spider though. Even a garden spider bite can make someone's ankle swell up like a football if they are allergic to the venom. So always keep some anti-histamines and Neurofen in the bathroom cabinet! One thing we totally agree on, its best not to get bitten! All the best Wesley. Oh and the Townsville incident with the puppies was a Selenotholus sp. 'Townsville'.

[Sam Heaton]

Chinese Bird Spider (Haplopelma Huwenum)

I don't know if this will be of any interest to anyone but on wikipedia it states that the chinese bird spider has medically significant venom and is blamed for at least 1 death in china but that is not confirmed (you will have to get to the Spider Bite page to find that). It is of the Haplopelma Genus and I think it is Haplopelma Huwenum that is found mainly in china as there are other sub-species found in veitnam and on Hainan Island. Was quite interested in this when I found it but I'm now starting to doubt whether this is actually true.
If anyone has an opinion that would be great as I like to find out whether this is true.
Sam

[Nicola Dolby]

It is reported that a baby was killed by a H. schmidti whilst playing in a back garden near to the Chinese/Vietnamese border, but this has not been officially confirmed as being true. The H. schmidti comes from this border region where it is rumoured they are responsible for the deaths of many cattle (obviously not looking where they are treading). So it is questionable as to whether the stories are true or part of the demonising of a poor spider just acting normally when a cow nearly treads on it. According to C. Lallier the four families with medically significant venom are in order: Poecilotheria, Stromatopelma, Pterinochilus, Haplopelma. There are lots of stories on the web, the classic being the man on "Phong's Tarantulas" who got a bite from a P. striata then took 2 days before deciding to take a painkiller and I think it was 2 weeks before seeing a doctor - idiot. Truth is if you are worried about buying a tarantula as Scott appeared to be, ask someone here like Ray Hale or Mark Pennell and get the professional advice. Then you won't go wrong.

[scotttaylor]

if it was just me i not caire if it was a funnel web spider but my g/f and my self are getting a place soon and she has kids and i read that it has killed a dog well i think it rubbish as that must be like the pound for pound it would have to be as deadly as a rattle Snake

[Nicola Dolby]

Fortunately it doesn't work that way Scott. Its all about the way the venom reacts with our bodies biochemically. As we work differently to cats or dogs then spider venom effects different species in different ways. For example a good Selenotypus envenomation might make you ill for two or three days, yet Fido might be in serious trouble. However if Sydney funnel web adult male bit you, then without treatment you 'd be dead in 72 hours wheras Fido would be mildly annoyed by the same bite (or so I gather). Its all about how the venom interacts with our bodies, and who has the strongest venom is all relative to the species being bitten.

[Colin D Wilson]

Nicola's correct, in general simple terms, venomous animals have a venom that is specifically designed to efficiently subdue a particular prey, in certain species the venom can also be of a design that would incapacitate a predator to the venomous animal as a self defence mechanism.
Some venom types are toxic to amphibians but harmless to primates etc (ie hognose snakes (Heterodon)), some are lethal to primates but cause mild irritation to canine / feline's etc ( as per the funnel webs, my cousin in Adelaide has a cattle dog that seems to get bitten about three or four times a year without fail and is still going strong at 8 years old).
This diverse range of venom toxicities and design leads to a strange synopsis regarding antivenoms and some can be successfully cross applied. i.e. for scorpions Buthidae (particularly B arenicola) Polyvalent snake antivenom is used, this was originally designed for use with the Indian saw-scaled Viper Echis carinatus. Amazing that two seperate animals, with two seperate venom cocktails designed for different prey items have the same effect on the human body.

[Kain Prestwood]

Slightly off topic, but I remember a wildlife program on BBC1 (Probably Sir Attenbourough ones) and there was a snake, which I can't think for the life of me what it was, thats venom can be deadly to humans, but it's harmless to rats! It's prey was small mammals. It showed you this snake bite the rat, but the rat fought back and killed the snake. Mental.

As for poisonous tarantulas, The way I see it, if your worried about a certain tarantula's venom, simply don't buy the species - even if its to put your mind at rest.

To start with I was nervous of my Pokies. Really damn fast, and I head stories that they would bite you rather than look at you. I remember a mate of mine telling me he was put on his back for a week from a P regalis bite - but he's known to tell some stories. However there reputation isn't deserved. All my pokes seem to be clam if a little shy. When I was trying to get pictures of the legs of my P pederseni, I was waiting for world war 3! but nope, he leisurely walked into a cricket tub, posed while I took the pic, and leisurely walked back into his enclosure.

I dunno, but I think if your uneasy or afraid of them, they feel the same of you which is when they come very unpredictable. If I'm honest, I trust all my tarantulas more than I trust dogs.

Just my thoughts on the matter anyway.

Kain

[Rebecca Norris]

No-one has ever been killed by a tarantula bite. If this was true, and publicised as true, we'd have to have DWA licenses to keep certain species. No tarantula is "poisonous", venomous yes, they possess venom glands and venom and are therefore venomous. Wesley got bitten by one of these and he had swelling and was in agony for 5 days, but he's still here with us! (Thank god!) Yeah, of course you don't want to get bitten, nobody does but it happens sometimes.
Africans and Poecilotheria (And some Haplopelma i think?) seem to do more damage with bites than for example Brachypelma or New World species.

As Kain said, if you're unsure of a certain spider then don't keep it. You don't have to buy something just because it looks and sounds good... "Wow it can take on rats!!!" Yea, in the wild. Which probably means its really strong as it doesn't say they have been witnessed killing rats, only that rat remains have been found in their burrows, so who knows if the rat wasn't dead before the spider found it?? If so, thats one strong spider to drag it all that way! I certainly wouldn't want to get tagged by it lol I'm worried one day i'll get bitten by a pokie, but i do keep them and have not had any problems, not even a threat posture! I get more threat postures out of my Grammostola rosea LMAO!!

[Nicola Dolby]

You are right Becky they are a tough bunch from Australia. Also what isn't mentioned is that Selenocosmia crassipes (sp. Sarina is the sister species, colours slightly different and more leggier wheras crassipes is more stocky) is the biggest known species in Australia. Its true they have been known to take out Cane Toads as well. At the end of the day if people are sensible and treat one with the respect any other tarantula gets they should have a lovely pet for years. All this talk of bites, I have come very close twice now, both times through not thinking about what I was doing. After what I've said, the irony is one was an African and the other was a Poecilotheria! I think the lesson is when you are shipping an Avic off for breeding and you touch its feet to guide it into the container fine. However if you then go to feed Poecilotheria and one walks up to the container lip to say hello, DON'T do the same thing!!! Pokes don't like their feet touched and i was lucky I only got lunged at.

[Rebecca Norris]

Blimey lol Rather you than me :P So what do you do with a pokie on the run? lol

My rosie doesn't like anything near her. (Yeah i know, comparing a Selenocosmia sp, African and a Poecilotheria species to a rosea lmao!) Take the lid off and move and she threatens and gets fangs out.. spose to be docile but she doesn't realise that!! lol
The male i have is lovely, very quiet and slow. When he got here i gently touched his hind leg to encourage him to walk out of the container and he did spin round rather fast and think about lunging me but my reflexes and fear i'll get bitten make me rather quick lmao! Blink and you'll miss my arm move! hahahaha He didnt lunge though and he didn't bite, just kinda stopped half way round as a warning. Won't be doin that again don't worry mate

[Colin D Wilson]

Tongs, paintbrush, flat piece of clear plastic and a tub to move or transfer anything these days.
learnt my lesson painfully 20 years ago !!!!