Me and spiders are not friends. I know, I know, they do good things. But honestly the way they move, and the fact that some of them can kill me just really freaks me out. Nothing freaks me out more than a big spider, but apparently Australian Reptile Park spider keepers do not feel the same way. They get all warm and giddy over the largest recorded male funnel web spider.
Largest Recorded Male Funnel Web Spider Gets A Name
These people like spiders so much that they decided to give this one a name. I guess the largest recorded male funnel web spider made them think of the largest Avenger, so they named him Hemsworth. That is the name of the actor who played the iconic Thor in the film franchise. Although I guess if you want to get technical, Hulk is the biggest...but that is only when he is green. Anyway, that is beside the point.
This zoo is no stranger to large spiders. In the past, they produced giant spiders named Hercules and Colossus. However, this male funnel web spider is even bigger. PEOPLE Magazine shares the measurements of this largest recorded funnel web spider. "The spider measures a whopping 9.2 centimeters foot-to-foot." This far surpasses Hercules and Colossus. Those giant spiders measured in at 7.9 and 7.8 centimeters respectively.
Benefits Of Funnel Web Spiders
Screenshot from Facebook
While it is hard for me to admit any benefits of spiders, the Australian Reptile Park would disagree. Each year, they collect funnel web spiders to help with their anti-venom program. Oh yea because did I forget to mention, this massive spider is also one of the most venomous spiders on the planet...joy.
However, this program collects the spiders and milks them for their venom. I would pay to see how someone milks one of these things. Although it seems unbelievable to me, it has been done time and time again. Additionally, that material has successfully been used to make anti-venom, so I guess yay for these massive creatures.
Hemsworth is so big that his fangs are also massive...yikes. However, in this instance that is a good thing. His massive fangs produce massive amounts of venom, which is great for the anti-venom program. So all in all, while this largest recorded male funnel web spider is the thing of my nightmares, he serves a good purpose.
Turns out you don't have to pay...here is a video showing how to milk the spiders for free. You're welcome.
